


Dragon Central Tumblr Request Drabbles

by 360loverpenguin, Areias, CallieeGirl, MandalorianDragonTrainer, randiroo26, StefWrites



Category: How to Train Your Dragon (Movies)
Genre: Drabble, Drabble Collection, Drama, F/M, Family Fluff, Fluff, Injury, Originally Posted on Tumblr, Requests, Romance, The-Dragon-Central, Tumblr, finished prompts
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-24
Updated: 2020-01-16
Packaged: 2020-01-31 05:44:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 17
Words: 19,775
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18584968
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/360loverpenguin/pseuds/360loverpenguin, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Areias/pseuds/Areias, https://archiveofourown.org/users/CallieeGirl/pseuds/CallieeGirl, https://archiveofourown.org/users/MandalorianDragonTrainer/pseuds/MandalorianDragonTrainer, https://archiveofourown.org/users/randiroo26/pseuds/randiroo26, https://archiveofourown.org/users/StefWrites/pseuds/StefWrites
Summary: All the Drabbles from the Dragon Central Requests on Tumblr.





	1. A/N

Hello! Just a little introduction!

This book will be filled with the Requests we have filled from our Profile on Tumblr, Dragon Central.

If you would like to request go to: <https://the-dragon-central.tumblr.com/>

Rules:

**1\. Requests can be anonymous.**

**2\. You cannot request a certain author**

**3\. Be patient, we do have things going on in our lives other than Tumblr**

**4\. No smut**

**5\. We will write the following: Angst, Fluff, AU’s, Character Death (sometimes), etc.**

**6\. You cannot complain about who wrote the Drabble/One-Shot. Everyone here is a talented writer, so let’s not give them hate.**

**If any rules are broken, your Drabble/One-Shot will not be written.**


	2. The Leg Talk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> fitzsimmons-is-forever: I love that you guys are taking prompts!! Maybe a fairy light funny scene with modern hiccstrid where toothless the cat takes and chews on his leg like in the movie and Astrid finds out about his leg?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hiccstridgirl here! Thanks for the request! I really enjoyed writing it! I hope you enjoy reading it!

Astrid took a deep breath.  _It’s just a date. You’ve been on plenty of dates, Astrid. This isn’t any different. Just act normal._

Thanks to her best friend Rachel, or better known as Ruffnut, she was meeting up with a blind date. Apparently Ruffnut’s boyfriend, who she called Fishlegs, had this friend who was single. Not much was told to her except for the fact that he was hot and had a cat. That was the extent of her knowledge.  _Again, thanks Ruffnut._  Astrid rolled her eyes and looked at her phone.

“Apartment 54,” she mumbled to herself and pushed a button on the elevator. When she reached the floor she walked down the hall and stopped at a door. “Here we go.”

_Knock, knock._

“Uh… Just a… Yeah, just a minute!” A nasally voice floated through the door. She heard shuffling and a slam before the door flew open, revealing a tallish, auburn-haired man with piercing green eyes. 

_Oh yeah, hot._

“Hi, you must be Astrid,” he reached his hand out, which Astrid took and quickly shook his clammy hand. “Fishlegs didn’t mention how beautiful you were…” he quickly blushed and shut his mouth. “Oh, man. That was embarrassing. I’m sorry, I’m horrible at dates.”

Astrid nodded and then looked around. “I assume you’re my date? Or is there another person who I’m waiting for?”

“Oh. Oh! Right, right. I’m, uh.. You promise not to laugh?”

“I don’t make a habit of laughing at people when they tell me their name.”

“Okay. I’m Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third.” No matter how hard Astrid tried, she couldn’t keep from laughing and let out a little giggle. Hiccup looked defeated. “Yeah, I know. A horrible name. I don’t know what my parents were thinking.”

“No, no… Hiccup. It… It suits you.” She laughed again. When the auburn looked away, Astrid held her hand up. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry. Seriously, you’re name’s fine…. It’s…”

“Strange? Weird? Useless?”

“I was gonna say unique.”

Hiccup nodded and Astrid couldn’t tell if it was in agreement or sadness. There they stood, for about five minutes she would wager, neither speaking a word. Astrid, realizing it was going nowhere, huffed. “Are you going to invite me inside, or…?”

Hiccup’s eyes widened. “Right! Sorry, I’m a little new to this. Would you like to come inside?”

“Sure,” she tried hard to hide her smile as she stepped inside. “Whoa. Ruff said you lived in an apartment. This… This is like a penthouse!”

“It’s… home,” he said quietly. Astrid glanced at him and then looked towards the dining room to see candles and two glasses of wine set on a table.

“Shall we eat?”

“Yeah,” Hiccup said and started walking towards the table. “Right this way.” Astrid followed him and they both sat down to a nice spaghetti dinner.

“Ruffnut never said you could cook.”

“Fishlegs never said you tapped your foot when you were nervous.”

Astrid glanced down and stopped bouncing her leg, letting out a small chuckle. “So… How has your day been?”

The conversation was nice, in Astrid’s way of thinking. Nothing inappropriate and Hiccup kept it interesting. Yet, she couldn’t help but feel he was hiding something from her.

“And then Tuffnut was all, ‘No! Don’t do that!’ and Ruffnut just slammed his,” Astrid continued her story while Hiccup’s eyes widened. She stopped and looked at him, alarmed. “What? What’s wrong?”

Suddenly a black cat shot out from under the table with something in it’s mouth. “Toothless! No!” Hiccup stood up and quickly ran after the cat. Well, more like wobbled.

“Huh…” Astrid followed him into a bedroom, curious as to what’s going on. 

“Toothless! Give it back! Bad cat, very bad cat!” Hiccup fought with the feline, trying to retrieve the item that was in it’s claws. 

“Ahem,” she cleared her and Hiccup looked up. He yanked the thing from the cat and hid it behind his back, before standing. 

“Astrid. Hey! Hi, Astrid. Hi, Astrid, Hi, Astrid,” Hiccup said nervously, trying to act normal. Astrid narrowed her eyes at him and stepped closer.

“I normally don’t care what people do, but you’re acting weird.” Hiccup hopped to get closer to the wall and smiled slightly. “What are you hiding?” she walked over to him. 

“No, Astrid. Don’t-!” Hiccup fell to the ground as Astrid pulled the object from behind him.

“Is this… A leg?” she looked at him as he looked away. Her eyes traveled down and landed on his left leg. More importantly, his  _missing_  left leg. “Okay, next question. Is this  _your_  leg?”

Hiccup sighed. “I wasn’t going to tell you like this… Or at all. Normally when I have dates they don’t go this far before the girl decides to dump me. I, uh… Lost my leg, in an airplane crash.”

“Wait, what?” Astrid asked.

“Yeah. When I was fifteen, I was flying on an airplane when it went down. I survived but uh… Some others didn’t. The doctors said I was lucky I only lost my leg.”

“Wow…”

Hiccup nodded. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you earlier. I’m sure you don’t want to continue this date. So, you can go. I won’t blame you. I-”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa. Who said anything about wanting to leave?” Astrid asked. “Sure, you’re a weirdo, but so am I. I don’t blame you for hiding your missing leg. I mean, I probably would’ve done the same.”

“Really?”

“No. I’d tell people right away. But I thought it was the right thing to say,” Astrid said and Hiccup laughed softly. “So… What do you say we start over?”

“Are you serious?”

Astrid nodded and stuck her hand out. “Hi, I’m Astrid Hofferson, your date. I’m also holding your leg. Which, by the way, is pretty cool.”

“Oh, thanks,” Hiccup grabbed her hand and she pulled him up. “I’m Hiccup Haddock. What do you say we get back to our dinner?”

“I’d love to. But.. Don’t you want your leg back?” Astrid asked and Hiccup shrugged. 

“Sure, you go on ahead. I’ll be right with you.” The blonde nodded and handed him the leg before leaving the room. Hiccup turned to Toothless who seemed to be smirking. “Yeah, yeah. Thanks for nothing you useless animal,” he said and tossed his leg to the cat, who gladly began chewing on it. 

When Hiccup returned to Astrid their conversation continued, this time better than before. For no secrets were ever kept between them again. Well… except for maybe two years later when Astrid told him there would soon be another someone who’d want to chew on his leg.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Remember, if you want to request go to: https://the-dragon-central.tumblr.com/


	3. Where's Zephyr

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anonymous asked:
> 
> Could you write modern Hiccstrid fic where they’re looking for their sweet toddler Zephyr to put her down for her nap; then they end up finding her cuddling with dog Toothless on his doggie bed already asleep?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hiccstridgirl here! I couldn’t help but add a little surprise to the end. I hope this is what you had in mind! 
> 
> Warning: Cuteness Overload and Hiccstrid Fluff

“Zephyr?” Hiccup looked under the two-year-old’s bed for the umpteenth time. 

“Hiccup, how many times are you going to check under her bed? She’s not there,” a voice came from behind him. He looked over his shoulder at his wife.

“Well, we’re running out of places she can hide. Seriously, how hard is it to find a two-year-old?” 

“Apparently really hard. She  _is_ your daughter after-all.”

“Oh, so this is my fault?”

“You got that right,” Astrid said before laughing. “I remember when we were younger Stoick told my parents he searched the house and couldn’t find you, just to find out you were snuggling with your stuffed dragon in one of the kitchen cupboards.”

“Have we checked the kitchen yet?”

Astrid shook her head. “The only places we’ve checked have been in her room, mainly under her bed. Which, by the way, she still isn’t under.” Hiccup sighed and stood up. 

“Well, Mrs. I-know-exactly-where-our-daughter-would-be-because-I-think-I-know-everything, where do  _you_ suppose she is?”

“Now that you mention it…” 

* * *

Astrid pulled back the shower curtain. “Huh. I could’ve sworn she’d be here. She alwayshides here when we play hide and seek.  _Always.”_

“So, I guess you don’t know where she is,” Hiccup said as he leaned against the door frame.

“Shut up.” The blonde opened the bathroom cabinets to find them filled with towels and cleaning supplies, but no Zephyr. “We checked the kitchen, living room, bedrooms, and bathrooms. We’ve looked everywhere. But she has to be here somewhere. She couldn’t have just disappeared.”

“Man, I knew she hated taking naps, but she’s two. TWO. How could a two-year-old know exactly where to hide so her Mommy and Daddy can’t put her to bed?”

“I told you, she’s  _your_ daughter.”

“Hey, don’t pin this on me! If I remember correctly when you were younger you fell asleep in the in your family’s chicken coop because you refused to take a nap as well.”

“I told you not to bring that up again. It’s embarrassing.”

“You just  _loved_ sleeping with animals.”

Astrid rolled her eyes. “You fell asleep on the roof hiding from your Dad.”

“You fell asleep in my bed because you were afraid of thunderstorms.”

“I was six!”

“No, I distinctly remember you being seventeen when you did that.”

“Okay, the first time was when I was six. Besides, if  _I_ remember correctly, I didn’t come to your house just because there was a thunderstorm, Mr. I-made-a-new-invention-and-want-to-test-it-out-in-lightning.”

“I still have a bruise from where you punched me when I told you about it.”

“Liar. You do not.”

“Oh no, I really do. Besides, I recall you enjoying that night,” Hiccup smirked.

“That sounded so dirty, Hiccup. It sounds like we- no,” Astrid blushed. “The pillow fight is not something you - How is this helping us find Zephyr?”

“You said it yourself, we’ve looked everywhere. It’s not like there’s a chicken coop she can hide in.”

Astrid froze. “Wait, that’s right… We don’t have a chicken coop!”

“That’s exactly what I just said.”

“Hiccup, I think I figured out where Zephyr is! It’s so obvious! Why didn’t I think of it before? Of course she would be there!”

“Astrid, you’re not making any sense.”

“You know how I said she was your daughter? Well, you love animals, right? And who did you used to sleep with before we got married?”

“Toothle-Oh.” Hiccup’s eyes widened. “So she must be-”

“Wherever the nearest animal is. Which would be-”

“Toothless!” The couple raced to their bedroom where Toothless was taking his afternoon nap on his doggie bed. The black dog opened his eyes slightly and looked at his humans before glancing beside him. There, sleeping between the edge of the bed and Toothless, was Zephyr.

“Well, what do you know,” Hiccup smiled softly before turning to Astrid. “Should we take her back to her bed or-”

“Let her sleep. Let both of them sleep,” Astrid sighed happily as she watched her daughter smile slightly. “She’s so cute. If we move her we risk waking her up.” 

Hiccup wrapped his arms around her waist as they watched the two. “We did good.”

“Mhmm,” Astrid hummed in agreement. “We may want to get a bigger doggie bed for Toothless, though.”

“Really? Why do you say that?” 

“Well, when the second baby comes along, they’ll probably end up sleeping here too.”

“Second baby- Wait, are you pregnant?” Hiccup turned Astrid around so that she was facing him. Astrid just smiled and nodded. “You know, we could always go looking for a bigger bed when Zephyr wakes up.” Hiccup engulfed her in a hug and kissed her. Then the two watched as Zephyr and Toothless slept, Hiccup resting his hand contently on Astrid’s flat stomach.

_He’d have to remember to thank Zephyr later for her little game of hide-and-seek._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Request Drabbles at: https://the-dragon-central.tumblr.com/


	4. A Birthday Gift

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> niyana-the-ambiguous-mobian asked:
> 
> Could you write a fluff Drabble for Astrid and Nuffink please? I don’t see almost any stories for these two. Thanks!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey there! @chiefhiccstrid here. I loved this prompt because I love Nuffink/Astrid content just as much as I love Hiccup/Zephyr content. There definitely needs to be more of it! 
> 
> I based this off a super cute drawing I saw by @vermilion–sky7 and here's the link to it!  
> https://vermilion--sky7.tumblr.com/post/183616243597/a-flower-for-mum-totally-on-board-with-nuffink
> 
> I hope you like this short little one-shot. :)

Nuffink was really bad at coming up with gift ideas.

His father and his sister were great at it. They somehow always knew what the other needed or wanted without them ever mentioning it. And the gift was  _always_ perfect.

He knew that if he was getting a present from either one of them, he would never be disappointed.

But Nuffink didn’t inherit his father and sister’s great gifting abilities. And today was his mother’s birthday but he still had no present in mind at all.  

She deserved the whole world, but even at the age of five years old, Nuffink knew he couldn’t manage to pull that off by the end of the day.

His dad had handed her his present this morning before he left for the day.

Now Nuffink was watching his mother unwrap Zephyr’s present that she just finished wrapping up in her room that she even managed to top off with a big blue ribbon. His older sister had been practicing drawing the dragons ever since their family returned from their trip to the hidden world. 

After giving their father a drawing of Toothless, she’d worked non-stop on sketching Stormfly just because she knew this day was coming up and Zephyr figured their mom would like a drawing as well.

And Zephyr was right. As soon as she saw the drawing was of her beloved blue and yellow dragon, she pulled her daughter in for a hug and commented on how it looked just like her.

During the excited chatter about all the details on her face and scales, Nuffink snuck out of the house - determined to find something… _anything_  to hand his mother for her birthday.

He walked down the small trail behind their house that led into the forest filled with tall grass, gigantic trees, and lots of flowers that lined the dirt path.

Out of all the colorful flowers on the side of the trail, there was only  _one_  that was blue. It sat in the middle of purples and yellows and whites, and Nuffink was immediately drawn to the tall and bright flower that stuck up above all the rest in the grass.

A flower that was his mother’s favorite color was a lot better than going back home empty handed so he plucked it from the ground and headed back up the path.

When Nuffink walked out of the forest, he saw his mother standing by the front door with worried creases in her forehead that immediately softened with relief when she saw him standing by the entrance to the forest.

Astrid ran up to him, “Finn!” She sighed and crouched down in front of him, “I turned around and you were gone. Where did you go?” The tone in her voice was filled with more worry than anger at his short disappearance.

His mother didn’t even notice the blue flower clasped in his hands until he handed it towards her, “Happy Birthday, mama.” He smiled that sweet crooked grin that she could never stay mad at for long.

Astrid looked down at the small plant in front of her face, “Is this where you went?”

Nuffink nodded slowly.

Before taking the flower from his tiny hands, Astrid wrapped her arms around her son in such a tight embrace that it caused a small giggle to escape from the child’s lips, “I love it.” She smiled when she let go and took hold of the flower.

And this was all he needed to hear for a look of pure joy to spread across the young child’s face.

They walked back to the house together and as Nuffink watched his mother place the small flower on the middle of the table in a cup of water, he thought that maybe…just maybe…he wasn’t so bad at giving gifts after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Request at: https://the-dragon-central.tumblr.com/


	5. Zephyr's Adventure

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> martabm90 asked:
> 
> I'm so glad about all of this and I want to give it a try 😍 I'm thinking about little Zephyr telling to her pregnant mummy that she wants to go to an adventure and Astrid takes her around new Berk to have some mother/daughter time ❤ Zephyr wants to tell everything about her day with mummy to her daddy, but will she be able to wait for him until he gets home or will she fell sleep before? Let your imagitation go wild 😄 Thank youuuuuu!!!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! @hiccstridgirl here! Happy birthday @martabm90 I hope you enjoy!

“So, Zephyr, what do you want to do today? Daddy has meetings and is staying at the Great Hall late so you’ll be with me,” Astrid pulled a shirt over the two-year-old’s head.

Zephyr stuck her lip out, as if thinking, and Astrid tried hard not to laugh. She was almost exactly like Hiccup. If not her for her appearance, Astrid would think Hiccup gave birth to Zephyr himself. “Out,” the toddler said and pointed towards the door. “Ventue, ventue.”

“You want to go on a great adventure?” the blonde asked, smiling at her daughter’s way of saying adventure. Zephyr nodded and started walking towards the door leading to outside. “Hold on there, my little dragon rider. Let’s pack lunch so we can have a picnic.”

The little girl seemed to agree and after putting some food into a basket, Astrid and Zephyr took off, exploring the village.

* * *

“And here is where your Daddy fought evil Grimmel,” Astrid picked Zephyr up so she could see out into the ocean. “It’s also where we let the dragons go.”

“Dwagons?”

“That’s right, Zephyr. Dragons. And one day you’ll get to meet them.”

“Can I ride?”

“Of course, you can ride the dragons. Just like Daddy and I did when we were younger.”

“Baby?”

Astrid chuckled. “Yes, the new baby will also ride them.”

“Now?”

“No, baby. That’s not possible at this exact moment. And besides, it’s not like your father would let me fly right now.” Zephyr seemed content with the answer and leaned her head against her mother’s shoulder. “What do you say we go check out the south side of the island and then visit Grandma Valka? We still have a little more time before we have to be home.”

The little girl nodded and Astrid set her down before Zephyr took off running. “Wet’s go, Mama!”

“Okay, okay. I’m coming, Zephyr. Don’t get too far ahead,” the female viking chuckled at her daughter’s energy and followed.

* * *

When they arrived home, Astrid was carrying a very tired Zephyr. The two had dinner at Valka’s house since Hiccup wouldn’t be home for a while yet. “I think you need to get to bed.”

“No Mama! I muss stay wake. Daddy,” Zephyr yawned.

Astrid smiled. “Why do you have to be so cute? It’s impossible to say no to you and your Daddy. Okay, fine, you can stay up until Daddy gets home,” she said, knowing full well Zephyr would never make it.

And she didn’t.

By the Hiccup got home from his last meeting, Zephyr was curled up on the wooden couch, sleeping. Astrid was relaxing in a chair, eyelids heavy, willing herself to stay awake until her husband walked through the door. The Chief made his way over to his wife and pressed a kiss to her head.

“Looks like someone had a full day.”

Astrid nodded and held her hand out, signaling for Hiccup to help her up. “She did. I don’t know how that little body has so much energy.”

“I was talking about you,” Hiccup pulled Astrid out of the chair. “You shouldn’t overdo it, Astrid.”

“I’m pregnant Hiccup, not dying.”

Hiccup gave a dry laugh and wrapped his arms around Astrid from behind, resting his chin on her shoulder. “That gets funnier every time you say it.” He then glanced at Zephyr. “So, what did you do to make our little warrior so exhausted?”

“We went on an adventure today.”

“Did you?” The auburn smiled.

“Mhmm. We went to the cliff.”

“Oh really?”

“Yes. And, Hiccup?”

“Hmm?”

“Zephyr wants to ride dragons.”

Hiccup’s face became serious and turned so that he faced Astrid. “Then she will. And she’ll have the greatest adventure ever.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Request at: https://the-dragon-central.tumblr.com/


	6. Warmth of the Stars

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> vikingdorks asked:
> 
> Hello! I’ve been planning to write a story about this lately, but I just didn’t have the guts to do it. Fortunately, I happen to see the recent blog announcement and it would really mean the world to me if somebody wrote a story about Hiccup’s proposal to Astrid. I was wondering it would take place on the cliff where the dragons left, but any place would be perfect. Thank you so much for this opportunity! :)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, @mandaloriandragontrainer here! I hope you enjoy this unbearably sappy little piece!

The icy night wind softly lifted Astrid’s blonde hair from her neck. Closing her eyes, it was easy to imagine she was in Stormfly’s saddle once more, racing the seabirds high above the cold Nordic sea. But when her eyes opened again, she was back on the grassy cliffside, overlooking the foamy waves beating the rocks nearly a quarter league below.

It made sense that she felt closest to the dragons in the place where they left.

She glanced to her left, spotting a figure at the cliff’s edge, eyes transfixed on the horizon as the moon rose to take the place of the sun, a tapestry of stars flung behind it. Whenever she couldn’t find Hiccup, this was where she knew to come. Quietly, she approached him and intertwined her fingers with his. “Enjoying the view?”

“Yep. Something else, isn’t it?”

Astrid nodded, gently letting her head rest on Hiccup’s shoulder as her eyes wandered to the sky, searching for dragons amongst the stars. “I miss them, too.”

The young chief sighed, softly kissing her temple. “It hurts. Like it did with-with Dad…”

Eyes filling with tears, Astrid tenderly stroked Hiccup’s hair and placed a hand on his chest. “Yeah… it’s like… like a part of you is gone.”

“I can hack it during the day. There’s just… so much to do, y’know. But at night…” his voice wobbled, choked by hidden tears. “It gets so cold, and it just… reminds me he’s gone. I wake up and I think he’ll still be there, dragging me out of bed to go flying, but he’s….”

Hiccup’s voice caught, and Astrid gazed up into his eyes, gentle and wise and filled with love and pain alike. No one should ever have to lose as much as he did. Her heart swelled with love.

“We really should fix that,” she smiled shyly.

He regarded her quizzically. “Fix what?”

“You, being alone at night.”

He cocked his head like a confused Nadder. “What are you saying?”

She giggled fondly. “That I’m ready. Just waiting for you to ask me.”

For a moment, he stared in bewilderment. For someone so bright, he could be unbearably dense. But before long, red flooded his cheeks as the realization struck him. “Oh…”

“So?” Now Astrid was red as well. “What do you say?”

“Astrid, are-are you sure?”

“I’ve never been more sure of anything,” she breathed as she took his hands.

“Well then… Miss Astrid Hofferson, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”

With a beaming smile, Astrid threw a fist into Hiccup’s shoulder. “That… was for taking so long to ask.” She leaned in to kiss him, only to be grabbed into Hiccup’s arms and dipped nearly to the ground.

“That was  _not_ a proper answer, m’lady,” he teased.

 _“Yes!”_ she squealed, throwing herself upright and flinging her arms around his neck. Wrapping his arms around his lady love’s waist, Hiccup kissed her deeply, joy filling his being for the first time in what felt like so long.

Above them, the northern lights began to dance amongst the warmth of the stars.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Request at: https://the-dragon-central.tumblr.com/


	7. Zephyr's Baby Brother

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> anonymous asked:
> 
> Could you write a little fic about when Zephyr met Nuffink for the first time? Her being so excited she immediately wants to hold him?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! @hiccstridgirl here! I enjoyed writing this so much and I hope you enjoy reading it!

Zephyr glanced out her Grandma’s window again. “Zephyr, please come and eat.”

The almost three-year-old sighed and walked over to the table. “I miss Mommy.”

“Don’t worry little one, she’s alright,” Valka lied, knowing the last time she had heard about Astrid she wasn’t doing well. “Your father said that when your sibling was born he’d come and get you.” Zephyr pouted slightly and took a bite of her lamb chop. The two continued eating until a knock was heard and the door opened.

“Can I come in?” Hiccup appeared, looking exhausted but smiling. 

“Daddy!” Zephyr jumped down out of her seat and ran to her father, who gladly embraced her in a hug.

Valka stood and walked over to her son. “How is she?”

“Resting,” Hiccup answered, putting Zephyr on his shoulder’s and standing up. “Fishlegs expects her to make a full recovery now. But it was… intense.”

“Mommy’s otay?” Zephyr patted Hiccup’s head and he smiled.

“She is now. Do you want to go see your new sibling? _”_

“Yes! Yes!” The little girl clapped her hands.

Valka smiled and whispered a soft congratulations. “I’ll wait to visit the wee babe until Astrid’s feeling better,” she said and Hiccup bid her goodbye before running with Zephyr on his shoulders to their house. When they reached the closed door of his and Astrid’s bedroom, Hiccup set Zephyr down.

“Now Zephyr, you have to be quiet. Mommy and the baby are tired, okay?” Hiccup cautioned. Zephyr nodded understandingly and jumped up and down excitedly. The Chief opened the door and stepped inside, his daughter following. There on the bed was Astrid, looking very pale and tired, but very much aware her daughter was coming in.

“Zephyr,” she smiled and held her arms out for a hug.

“Mommy!” Zephyr ran to her mother’s open arms.

“Shhh,” her father shushed her from behind.  _Oh, right. She was supposed to be quiet._

“Would you like to meet your new baby brother?” Zephyr nodded eagerly and the blonde smiled as she glanced at the cradle beside the bed. Hiccup walked over and lifted the small baby before passing him to Astrid. “Zephyr, this is Nuffink.”

Zephyr looked at the baby for a moment before squealing. “Can I hold him? Pwease? Pwease? Pwease?” she asked, holding her arms out and looking at her father with big blue eyes. Hiccup smiled widely and looked at Astrid who nodded.

“Hold your arms like this, Zephyr,” Hiccup instructed and Zephyr did as she was told. Astrid then placed Nuffink in his big sister’s arms, supporting his head for her daughter. As soon as she placed him in her arms, Nuffink opened his eyes and looked at Zephyr. Blue eyes met blue eyes and that was the day Zephyr decided that Nuffink would be her best friend forever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Request at: https://the-dragon-central.tumblr.com/


	8. Worry

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> anislabonis-love asked:
> 
> Can you guys do one of Astrid getting injured while pregnant?? I want to know how Hiccup would react in one of yours point of view.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! :D @chiefhiccstrid here. :) Thanks for this awesome prompt. Hope you enjoy!

“Chief, you better come,” Eret called from behind him.

Hiccup glanced up from his papers resting on the desk in front of him. He turned to look at Eret and the mans face scrunched up with worry made his heart speed up, “What’s wrong?”

“It’s Astrid-“

Eret didn’t have to say anything else for him to push out of his seat - causing it to tumble over onto the ground - and run out of the smithy right towards Gothi’s.

When Hiccup arrived he was not only out of breath from making a quick trek across the village but also because his body tensed with worry the second he saw his very pregnant wife resting on the table and getting her bloody arm and head bandaged by the older lady.

He slowly walked towards her, “Oh gods, Astrid, are you-“

“I’m  _fine_ , Hiccup.” She replied, taking ahold his shaky outstretched hand.

“And the baby?” He asked, glancing down towards her round belly that she laid her free hand on the second he mentioned it.

“Fine too.” She reassured, “Right?” She asked Gothi who had just finished putting the last white bandage around the top of Astrid’s arm. The older woman looked up at the worried Chief and nodded.

The two women were both trying to reassure the man but it wasn’t working. The worried crease in his forehead was still too prominent.

“Are you  _sure_?” He asked Gothi.

Astrid sighed, frustrated by not only falling like an uncoordinated muttonhead but also how she knew she’d be dealing with a thousand questions from her worried husband the rest of the day.

Gothi nodded again, this time a little more intense than the last.

Hiccup turned his attention back to his injured wife, “What happened?”

“I tripped,” Astrid replied, annoyance by the whole situation very present in her short tone.

“How?” He asked. Astrid  _didn’t_  trip. She was more coordinated than anyone he’s ever met. He’s seen her do things he could only dream of.

Astrid breathed another sigh, “ _Because_  I can’t see my feet and my balance is all messed up because I’m  _pregnant_  with  _your_  big-headed child.”

Hiccup didn’t quite have a response for that. He just stood there looking at her with a face full of worry and green eyes that had a little bit of pity.

So she took the opportunity to hop down from the seat and head home because she was ordered to rest for the remainder of the day.

She heard Hiccup thank Gothi for the help before scrambling after her and following her the whole way, never once drifting anymore than just a few feet from her side.

Astrid headed straight for the stairs and up towards their bedroom when they walked in the door.

“You need any help?” Hiccup asked.

“No, Hiccup.” She replied and continued up the steps, taking it slower than usual because even she was still a little shaken from her experience earlier.

And as she sat on the edge of their large bed, she realized when she couldn’t remove her boots that she did, in fact, need help.

Astrid was about to call his name when he walked in the door, his hands full with a mug of water and something wrapped in a cloth napkin.

“I thought you might be hungry.” He explained and set the contents down on the small table by the side of the bed.

She thanked him with a soft smile and watched as he hovered, obviously not wanting to leave her side at all and it should’ve annoyed her more but instead she felt that feeling she got when her sweet husband would tell her something really cheesy but completely full of love or when he’d kiss her for no reason or when he’d make some kind of sweet gesture just because she had a really long day.

“I do need some help.” She admitted.

His eyes immediately lit up, “Anything.” He spoke eagerly.

“I can’t get my boots off.”

He needed no further explanation and crouched down to gently slip them off her feet.

“Thanks.” She said as she watched him place them by their dresser.

“Anything else?” He asked.

She laid back on the soft pillow and pulled the furs over her, “No, I don’t think so.”

And then she watched him hover again. He was wringing his hands and biting his lip, obviously wanting an excuse not to leave her side.

“You’re gonna stay, right?” She gestured to his side of the bed, cold and empty and she truly did want it warm and filled with his presence.

Hiccup’s grin lit up the whole room that was slowly growing dark by each passing minute.

When he finally crawled into bed next to her, she scooted closer and snuggled into his side.

She felt him wrap an arm around her shoulder and place the other on top of her hand that was resting on her protruding stomach. Both smiled at the tiny movements of their child kicking and moving around that they felt beneath their hands.

Then she heard him whisper the word that meant more to her than any other, “Always.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Request at: https://the-dragon-central.tumblr.com/


	9. Second Chance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> anonymous asked:
> 
> This blog is the best thing ever, so excited to read all the awesome ficlets you guys write! Could I request a Rufflout fic? I was think Tuff’s reaction to them dating or something like that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! @generalhofferson360 wrote this here! Hope you enjoy!

The large oak door slammed shut behind him, the loud crash as it met the frame reverberated through the silent winter night. All noise from the party faded as he stormed away from the large building, his fists clenched as he seethed with anger. Of all the people in the archipelago, she had kissed him. Of course she had, nothing was ever easy with his sister.

He should be inside with his friends. It was Snoggletog after all. He shouldn’t have screamed, shouldn’t have ran off, shouldn’t have started that fight… but he couldn’t find it in himself to regret any of it. He could be naive, that he knew for sure, and people could take advantage of him all day for all he cared, but once you try to turn on his sister… that he wouldn’t stand for.

“Tuffnut.” Ruff called, her voice stone cold. He froze for a minute, she deserved an explanation. Not that she would understand anyway. Not that she would care what he had just done for her. He shook his head, continuing towards the forest, her cries falling upon deaf ears.

He trudged through the thick blanket of fallen snow covering Berk, focusing all his attention on the steady beat of his feet meeting the frozen earth. His sister, every bit as stubborn as he was, did not relent that easily. She effortlessly caught up to him, not that he had been making a strong effort to escape.

She grabbed his arm roughly, forcing him to face her. “What’s your problem?” she practically shouted. Tuffnut finally snapped his gaze up towards hers, his eyes laden with ice. “My problem? My problem is that you’ve been courting with Snotlout, my best friend behind my back for… I don’t want to know how long.” he snapped, unable to quell his anger any longer.

“Did you… did you even think for a second how that might make me feel Ruff?” he said harshly. Only he didn’t care how it made him feel. Sure, no viking would be happy to find out their twin was seeing their best friend in secret. Sure, he was terrified that this might be the first step in him losing his sister. But none of that mattered. If she was happy, he could find a way to be too.

But whatever happiness she felt with Snotlout… Tuff knew it wouldn’t last. He had a reputation after all, and dragon don’t change their scales. That wasn’t technically true, but Tuffnut had never been one for technicalities. Snotlout had hit on practically every girl he had laid eyes on, not to mention chasing relentlessly after Astrid for years.

As much as it pained him to admit it, Ruffnut was second choice, as the only single girl left on practically the whole island. And he would rather die than watch his twin sister be hurt upon discovering that news.

“How you feel? This isn’t about you, Tuff. Not like everything else. I’m twenty, I can look out for myself. I don’t need you.” Ruffnut bit harshly, her words hanging between them, almost colder than the arctic air burning their skin.

Tuffnut faltered at that, he stumbled backwards, feeling a few tears burning at the backs of his eyes. “Fine. But don’t say I didn’t warn you, sis.” He said, almost mocking the last word. He forced his tone to stay level, not risking allowing Ruff to see how deeply the words she spoke had cut him.

Ruffnut’s braids whipped across her face from the harsh northern wind as she watched her brother trudge back towards their hut. She stood there in the snow, a few tears building up in her own eyes as she crossed her arms indignantly.

A sense of guilt over took her, overwhelming all hers senses as the tears she had been desperately holding back began to stream down her face. She angrily dragged her hand across her face, reluctantly following the fading footprints of her brother as she made her way back towards the village. He was only looking out for her, after all, they always had each others backs in battle, she didn’t suppose this was much different.

She roughly threw the door to their hut open, as if blaming it for all her problems. She found her brother sitting on the worn floor near the fire, leaning towards the steadily flickering flames. She silently crossed the room, plopping onto the floor next to him as she dusted the snow off of her furs.

Tuffnut tensed as she sat, immediately taking note of her presence. He turned his face back towards the fire, his dreadlocks hiding his face from view. He picked up a metal rod that had been discarded on the floor nearby, jabbing lazily at some of the burning logs with it.

“Sorry.” Ruffnut relented, her voice barely reaching a whisper. She doubted he’d even heard her over the crackling of the fire. He sighed, running a hand over his face. He threw the rod back onto the wood floor, causing it to leave an angry scorch mark where it landed. “I guess I am too. I was just… I don’t trust him Ruff. I mean I do, in battle but…” he trailed off, making strained hand motions as he searched for the words.

“Not with me.” she finished. When you’ve lived with someone your entire life, it was easy to read them, though Ruffnut was sure even a complete stranger could’ve drawn the same conclusion. Tuffnut kept his gaze fixated on the now dying flames as she spoke, even Twintuition couldn’t offer him a clue as to what her reaction might be. The tense atmosphere surrounding the pair felt as if it could snap any moment, it was just a waiting game until he said the wrong thing and she exploded, much like he had earlier, to the dismay of Snotlout’s now broken nose. Honestly, he couldn’t blame her either. He was implying that there was no way someone could love her unless she was their last choice, and that realization pierced his heart every bit as roughly as her earlier words had. “Ruff, I didn’t mean,” he began, but even with his advanced language skills, Tuffnut had no clue what to say in that moment.

Ruffnut held up her hands, imploring him to listen to her. His mouth immediately snapped shut as he waited for her to speak.

“I get it. That muttonhead has probably flirted with every girl in the archipelago, why would I be so special to him? That’s what I thought too, which is why I tormented him for, like, three years.” she said, earning a small smile from Tuff as he recalled all the horrible pranks they had targeted Snotlout with. “But he’s changed. He hasn’t moved on, though he had every opportunity to. He waited for me. I didn’t think I was worth all of that, but apparently he did.”

Tuffnut allowed a real smile to penetrate his otherwise stoic expression. Maybe sometimes people deserve a second chance. He reached out and gently squeezed Ruffnut’s hand, the gesture conveying all that words could not.

“You’re just trying to protect me. Even though I’m still older than you.” Ruffnut said, and if she heard her brother’s comment about it only being three minutes, she didn’t mention it. “I accept the risk.” she stated simply, leaving the question of his response hanging in the thick air between them.

Tuffnut sighed after what felt like an eternity of silence. “I am totally being best man at the wedding.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Request at: https://the-dragon-central.tumblr.com/


	10. Fighting with your Family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> stonequiet asked:
> 
> How about hiccstrid teaching their kids to fight and maybe one of them gets hurt?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! @chiefhiccstrid here! :) Here ya go! Hope you enjoy and thanks for the ask! It was fun getting the chance to write the haddock kids a bit older since I haven’t got the chance to do that yet.
> 
> Also, thanks to @saieras for sharing some of his headcanons! :) They were great and really helpful! Also, you sent me this same ask in my own inbox but I answered it for you here!

It was the kids favorite day of the week.

The day their parents took the afternoon off and they all spent time together as a family.

Some days they’d take walks down to the beach and tell and listen to many different stories. And some days - like today - they’d go out to the large field behind their house and learn how to fight and spar and do all the tricks that went along with that.

Hiccup and Astrid were both good fighters with different strengths that each would teach their kids - both for fun and because they wanted them to know just how to protect themselves and fight for and with their people, if the need arose.

Astrid and Hiccup usually taught their kids as a team, but Astrid was always better at it. Ever so often he’d stand on the sidelines and watch with a proud fatherly smile.

Nuffink was best with swords. He had started with a tiny wooden one that he carried with him everywhere and slowly worked his way up to the real one he got for his tenth birthday.

Zephyr was fast and sneaky and always had a trick up her sleeve, one that hardly anyone could ever see coming until it was over.

Today was hand-to-hand combat - the one thing Nuffink hated the most. Not because he was bad at it, no, but because he felt more comfortable and more confident with his sword in his hand. That was also a habit that Astrid was trying hard to break and usually reminded him that he may not be lucky to always have it with him.

So, the family paired up in teams - Hiccup with Zephyr and Astrid with Nuffink.

Hiccup was sparring with his thirteen-year-old daughter and refreshing the basics. Punches and knee kicks and so on. Zephyr and the use of her father’s favorite tactic - the element of surprise - had her winning quite a few rounds, which caused her arms to go up as she cheered in excitement.

It wasn’t going so well on the other team, however. Astrid had her son a few feet away and was teaching him how to knock someone off their feet and send them tumbling to the ground to help give him the advantage. But Nuffink was starting to get frustrated the longer it took him to get the move right.

“Finn,” Astrid spoke when he’d failed. Again. “Just focus. Getting frustrated is only going to make it worse.”

Another cheer from his sister and a laugh from his father caused him to roll his eyes, “Can’t we just do something else?”

Astrid was never one to give in, “No.” She responded sternly.

“Why not?”

Her serious gaze softened as she looked down at her frustrated son, “Because you’ve almost got it. You had it up until the very last part.”

And that was the most frustrating part of it all. He couldn’t seem to find enough strength to swing his legs around as far as he needed to.

Nuffink sighed, “Show me again.” He’d always learned better if he could see it first. He had never been the best listener and found it a lot harder to remember something if he had just been told instead of shown.

“You remember how to land?” Astrid asked, eyeing him closely, “I don’t want you getting hurt.”

“I know, mom.”

Astrid nodded once before getting into position.

Nuffink was watching her moves so closely that he wasn’t paying enough attention to the timeline of things and he flew into the air before he had time to prepare his landing. The kick behind his legs took him by surprise and he landed on his side, his left arm crushing his fall.

“Finn!” Astrid yelled as she heard her son cry out in pain.

She kneeled beside him at the same time her husband and daughter ran up. She tried grabbing the arm that he was holding close to his chest as he squeezed his eyes shut tightly, but the touch made the cry worse and Astrid jumped back.

“Finn?” Zephyr asked, her voice shaking with worry. She’d never heard such a painful sound come from her little brother and it terrified her, “Is he going to be okay?”

Hiccup knelt down next to Astrid, “It’s probably broken.” He spoke to both his wife and daughter as he looked down at his son clutching his arm with tears streaming down his cheeks.

“Oh gods, I’m so sorry, Finn,” Astrid said as she ran her fingers through his blonde hair.

And Nuffink couldn’t hear anything any of them were saying because the pain in his arm was so bad it was causing his ears to ring. All he knew was that he must look really bad for his parents’ faces to be so riddled with worry.

Then suddenly he was lifted off the cold and wet grass and into his father’s warm arms.

And Astrid didn’t take her eyes off her son for one moment. Not the whole walk to the healers.

Not the whole time his broken arm was being wrapped up.

Not even the whole walk back home after it had all calmed down and the stabbing pain had turned into more of an uncomfortable throbbing.

“How’re you feeling, buddy?” His father had asked him for the hundredth time since they’d come home. Nuffink was lying in bed and looked up from his book to see Hiccup standing in the doorway with Zephyr right next to him.

“Fine,” Nuffink replied. He was a tad agitated that he kept getting asked that question.

“You want us to bring you some dinner?” His smiling sister asked as she stepped in his room and plopped down on the edge of his bed.

“Sure, thanks.” He replied, pushing away his sister’s hand that was ruffling his hair with his arm that wasn’t resting in a sling hung around his neck.

Hiccup walked into the room as his children lightly bickered back and forth. He stopped by the chair that Astrid was sitting in as she worked on sorting through different piles of paper, “You want us to bring you something too?”

She looked up at him, “Yeah.”

The smile she gave him didn’t reach her eyes. He leaned down and pressed his lips to her forehead and ran his hand down her one of her braids, “This wasn’t your fault, you know. It was just an accident.” He reassured her, knowing her well enough to know exactly what was going on inside that brain of hers.

“I know.” She replied, looking back down at the papers in her lap.

“Do you?”

“Yes.” Astrid snapped, flipping one of the papers over with more force than was necessary.

“Then why haven’t you left his room all evening?” He asked, kneeling down in front of her so she’d have to look at his face.

“I want to make sure I’m nearby in case he needs something.” She responded like it should’ve been the most obvious thing in the world.

Hiccup sighed and took her hand, “He’s going to be fine, Astrid. You know how I know that?”

She raised her eyebrows and waited for him to continue.

“Because he reminds me so much of you and you’re the strongest person I know.”

And she didn’t argue with that so she just rolled her eyes and couldn’t stop the smile from breaking out onto her face.

“You know I’m right.” Hiccup laughed.

“I never said you weren’t.” She quipped and leaned over to brush her lips against his.

The sweet and tender moment caused a groan from their two children across the room.

“Oh, gross. I definitely don’t want dinner  _now_.” Nuffink complained.

And the two parents laughed before leaning in to kiss each other once more - this time a little longer - just because it made their kids as grossed out as possible.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Request at: https://the-dragon-central.tumblr.com/


	11. The Cradle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> anonymous asked:
> 
> May I request a Hiccstrid fic in which Hiccup finishes making a cradle for their expecting baby (Zephyr) and shows Astrid? (He so totally would have incorporated Toothless and Stormfly in the design.) And maybe have Astrid shed a few happy tears.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! @hiccstridgirl here! Thank you for the request! I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!

“Hiccup, this is ridiculous.”

“Come on, Astrid. Just a little farther. You’re gonna love it, I promise.”

“You stopped me in the middle of eating my yak cream and pickles so it had better be good.” Hiccup made a face and shook his head as he continued to lead Astrid to wherever they were going. “I still don’t know why you had to blindfold me. It is not very safe for a pregnant woman to not be able to see.”

“We’re almost there and it’s not like I’m going to push you off a cliff or anything.”

“Wow, Hiccup. You’re really bad at this whole reassuring thing.”

“Haha,” Hiccup rolled his eyes and, after a few more steps, stopped walking. “We have arrived, M’lady.”

“Finally. Can I take this off now?” Astrid picked at the cloth covering her eyes.

“Hang on, hang on. Just a minute…” she heard him mess with something and then the sound stopped. “Okay. Now, on the count of three…. One-”

“Three!”

“Astrid!” Hiccup huffed when the blonde removed the blindfold. “You were supposed to wait until  _I_ counted to three.”

“Yeah, well, since when I have ever listened. I told you-” Astrid’s stopped when she saw what Hiccup was standing next to. “Is that a cradle?”

Her husband nodded. “Your Mom offered yours to use, but I thought I’d make one a little more… us.”

Astrid came over and ran her hand over the wood before she gasped. There, carved into the wood, was a picture of Stormfly and Toothless as well as Stoick. He had even incorporated some of Stormfly’s tail spines, dulled and placed in places the baby wouldn’t get hurt. “Hiccup… This is beautiful. How?”

“Many late nights and frustrated yells.” The couple stood in silence for a moment, Astrid admiring the cradle and Hiccup admiring her. “So… Do you like it?” he asked, breaking the quiet with a simple question.

The Chieftess turned. “Like it? I love it,” she then smiled and placed his hands on her protruded stomach so Hiccup could feel the baby kicking. “And someone else does too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Request at: https://the-dragon-central.tumblr.com/


	12. Mistakes Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> damnbrownbags asked:
> 
> could you please write a hicstrid fiction where someone gets injured on astrid's watch and she breaks up with hiccup because she thinks that their relationship is a distraction. and hiccup is distraught and everyone is sad.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, @generalhofferson360 here! This request was a welcome challenge, and I hope you enjoy! This part doesn’t have much Hiccstrid, but I plan to post a second part soon since this became longer than intended. Minor descriptions of violence lie ahead, you have been warned.

Astrid’s fingers glided over the smooth metal runes carved into the medallion as she twirled it around in her hands, committing every detail to memory. She had never been one to wear jewelry, so the weight of the silver chain against her neck was foreign. Though she couldn’t imagine ever taking it off.

She smiled, noting how the copper seemed to glow as it captured the light from the sun hanging in the sky above, bathing the Edge in a warm glow, seemingly out of place for the late autumn season. The light caught on the crystal water beneath them, after all, what better weather could there be for training? She glanced briefly at the target set up on a sea stack a few hundred metres in front of her, the group was perfecting coordinated aerial strikes. With the likes of Viggo Grimborn around, mistakes were a luxury they couldn’t afford.

She barely payed attention to the twins and Snotlout, they had gone over this drill almost a hundred times, so she felt she could chance dividing her attention for a minute or two. Her gaze wandered back down to the necklace, a promise from Hiccup that they would be together forever, despite what challenges may lie ahead. And with dragon hunters constantly breathing down their necks… there were many.

Her fingers traced the nicks worn into the pendant from what must have been years of wear. Not that she minded. Valka’s medallion was one of the few remnants Hiccup still had of his mother, and the fact that he trusted her with it… well, it made her heart soar, much like the feeling of racing towards the sky on the back of Stormfly.

Astrid motioned for Fishlegs to strike next, allowing the others a few moments to regroup. She felt she could forgo one round of practice, after all, she and Stromfly perfected every attack for hours, ensuring there would be no mistake.

It wasn’t like Astrid to get so distracted, especially not over something as trivial as a betrothal gift, but she didn’t think any harm could come of it, after all, it was just a practice with her friends. There had been an attack on the Edge a week ago, which had ended in their favour, leaving most of Viggo’s fleet in splinters. There was no possible way he could’ve rebuilt by now, so they weren’t on high alert, at least for a few more days.

The riders moved through their individual drills quickly, now moving on to group attacks, however with Astrid’s divided attention, she didn’t see Snotlout’s signal to get into position. And that was the moment she knew her relationship with Hiccup had become a distraction. She had sworn to herself moths ago, when they had first began courting that she wouldn’t allow her personal feelings to affect the group’s dynamic. However, not all promises are able to be met.

She heard Snotlout’s warning just in time, as he shouted for her to duck. Her hands immediately fell away from the necklace, it falling back against her light blue tunic as she quickly nudged Stormfly to dive. Astrid pressed herself against the worn leather saddle, wincing as she felt the heat of Hookfang’s blast dance over her back. She had barely missed it, the flames luckily not falling close enough to burn her, but close enough to boil the air around them, leaving a painful scalding feeling against her shoulders. 

She sat up a few seconds later, breathing a sigh of relief, until she heard Ruffnut’s cry of pain.

Ruffnut tightly gripped Barf’s horns, preparing for Astrid’s signal to move to her wing, where she and her brother were meant to provide cover from ‘hunter attacks’, which were really just Fishlegs with a few sacs filled with colourful dragon-scale paint. She rolled her eyes, they had been at this for hours, completing the attack almost perfectly each time. Didn’t Astrid ever take a day off? She would much rather be napping, or playing game of doubles in her boar pit.

Ruffnut craned her neck, trying to gaze around Astrid to Snotlout, who would be leading the next strike. What was taking them so long? Astrid should have moved into position by now, right? She could hardly see anything around her blonde hair, and large dragon however. Until it was too late. Astrid dived out of the way at the last possible second, and before Ruff and Tuff had a chance to react, the monstrous nightmare’s blast slammed into the side of Barf’s head, effectively throwing Ruff from her saddle.

She let out a yelp of surprise as she watched her dragon grow further away, as she plunged through the air towards the ocean below. Her necklace, made from the tooth of a terrible terror, whipped up towards her face, nicking her cheek with it’s razor edge.

“Sis!” Tuff yelled, casting a panicked look towards Astrid as he tried his best to control both dragon heads, urging the zippleback downwards. The dragon seemingly didn’t understand him, as both heads cast a confused look towards him.

Ruffnut didn’t remember much, except for the paralyzing pain as her left shoulder connected with the water’s surface, the tension creating an audible shatter which rang throughout her ears. The pain shot up her neck, into the back of her skull, before her unconscious body plunged beneath the unforgiving ocean’s surface.

Astrid froze, the situation in front of her playing in slow motion. Her mind went numb, only one thought repeating like a mantra, she did this. This was her fault. Hiccup had left her in charge, he had trusted her, and she had allowed their relationship to distract her. And because of it, one of their best friends, one of their family could be… No. She refused to allow herself to think that way. Ruffnut was strong, she could survive this… couldn’t she?

Astrid shook her head, silencing her thoughts. There was no time for her personal feelings, someone had to act quickly, or she wouldn’t stand a chance. Luckily, Snotlout reacted almost immediately, instructing Hookfang to dive after Ruffnut. The large dragon grasped her in his talons just after she had been submerged, grabbing her gently around her waist as to not aggravate any injuries.

Astrid had seen the hit, a fall from that height could be fatal, especially if Ruffnut’s spine had been injured upon contact. She had seen the fall, her neck and shoulder were the first to challenge the tension of the ocean’s hold.

Astrid glanced at the other riders, Snotlout was biting his lip, looking to Astrid anxiously for instruction. Something she knew she was no longer worthy to give. Tuffnut’s face was covered in unbidden tears, as he stared helplessly at his sister’s body, his hands knotting deep into his dreadlocks. “Is she…” he swallowed hard, his voice thick with tears, seemingly unable to get the word to pass his lips. “Will she be okay?” he asked, looking hopefully over at Fishlegs, who possessed the most medical experience out of the group.

“We need to get her back to the base as soon as possible, I can check for injuries there?” Fishlegs responded, as the riders all looked to Astrid for her reaction. She was in charge after all, and usually reacted quickly in emergency situations.

The blonde viking was still in shock however, “I… this is my fault.” she started, her voice weaker than intended. She cleared her throat, hoping the others didn’t notice. “Sorry Tuff…” she whispered, unsure if her voice had carried over the northern winds.

She pushed her leg against Stormfly’s side, quickly directing her to fly away from the others. It wasn’t like Astrid to run, she was a warrior, she always faced her challenges head on, but the crushing weight of her mistake loomed over her, pressing down on her shoulders with more force than her armour ever had. Her mind was foggy as they soared over the open water, a sight Astrid usually enjoyed, revelling in the feeling of the wind whipping against her skin. This time however, it was just a painful reminder of what she had caused.

She and Stormfly looped around at dusk, racing back to Dragon’s Edge just as night began to take the sky in its’ grasp. The hours out on the open water, or rather above it, had helped clear her mind some, and she had decided what she had to do, as painful as it may be.

She had allowed her feelings for Hiccup to distract her, and because of it, one of their teammates was… Astrid realized she didn’t even know how Ruffnut was. When had she become so irresponsible? She should’ve gone back sooner, should’ve helped the others… should’ve never started dating Hiccup in the first place.

He would be getting back in a matter of hours, after completing some much need recon on Viggo’s shipyards. And she would return her- his mother’s necklace then. With the constant threat of the hunters, they couldn’t afford slip ups. They weren’t kids anymore, risking a slap on the wrists, no. People’s lives were at stake. And that was something Astrid would never be willing to risk, even at the cost of her happiness.

Perhaps someday, when the threat of Viggo had long dissipated, she and Hiccup could be together again, but for the time, they couldn’t risk it. She leaned down against the thick leather saddle adorning her dragon’s back, “Think you can go any faster girl?” she asked, suddenly anxious to see her friend, praying she would pull through this, hoping the others had been able to save her.

She was valuable in battle, they couldn’t afford to lose a rider… but it was so much more than that. Ruffnut was part of their chaotic, insane, highly dysfunctional, family. The riders had become so much more than friends over their time on the Edge, and Astrid couldn’t even imagine their group without, well, any of them.

Tuffnut sat in the room, bathed in the soft glow of a flickering torch. He hadn’t left his sister’s side since they had returned, even though sitting in a worn wood chair for hours did nothing to improve the state of your back. But he didn’t care. If it were his choice, he would have gladly taken the hit in Ruff’s place.

He kept his slender fingers intertwined with hers, grazing her wrist, where he could feel a steady pulse, the only thing keeping him from spiralling. She would be okay. After surveying the damage, Fishlegs had concluded that she had suffered a shattered collarbone, and had likely passed out from the pain. Had her injury been a few inches higher, well, her steady heartbeat wouldn’t have been present to calm her brother’s nerves. It would take weeks for her to recover, but there was no doubt that she would. It was now simply a waiting game until she came to.

Fishlegs had flown back to Berk to gather herbs for pain relief, the ones in his garden not mature enough to pick yet, and would be back by daybreak. Tuff fixed the bandage holding her shoulder in place, which had shifted as Ruffnut stirred slightly, using it as an excuse to keep his mind busy.

He flicked his gaze up to the door where Astrid now stood, a worried expression written across her face, “How is she?” she asked, fidgeting with the hem of her tunic nervously.

“She’ll be fine.” Tuffnut bit coldly, hardly turning towards her. He hadn’t meant to snap, it wasn’t Astrid’s fault and he knew that, but his nerves were fried after the long, fearful hours which had passed since the accident. He winced slightly, Astrid had been known to take her failures seriously, and him pinning the blame to her likely did nothing to help that matter. As he turned to apologize however, he found her spot in the doorway vacated, a small feeling of guilt rushing over him.


	13. The World According To Snotlout

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> anonymous asked:
> 
> hi i wanna give this a try too haha, i will love to read a snotlout jealous of hiccup and astrid or just his thought as the years pasted since HTTYD to the epilogue to HTTYD3 concerning to the couple, I love your blog, thanks!!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! @masterhiccup wrote this here! Hope you enjoy!

**_Riders of Berk - Thawfest, age fifteen_ **

 “I know what you did.”

 “Yeah, I lost it. As usual.”

 “No. You threw the race.”

 “I have no idea what you’re talking about, Astrid. Snotlout was just the better Viking today.”

 “No, Hiccup. No one was a better Viking than you today.”

 Snotlout scoffed, turning away when Astrid kissed Hiccup. Why would she go for Hiccup when he is the one who won Thawfest? Astrid should have been falling all over him! What could Astrid possibly see in Hiccup? Snotlout tilted his head as he watched the two talking. Is it possible that Astrid does have feelings for him? That can’t be right.

 Astrid Hofferson is one of the strongest Vikings Berk has ever seen, and here she is flirting with Hiccup! Shouldn’t she be over with him congratulating him on winning Thawfest? Sure, Hiccup single handedly stopped the war between Vikings and dragons, and has the cool metal leg, and is the heir of Berk, and… dang it. Hiccup is cool. It’s no wonder Astrid is going after him instead.

 Snotlout couldn’t help himself. He’d always envisioned his future with Astrid there by his side, but now? He’s not so sure. He doesn’t like that his future is changing right before his eyes. He doesn’t like that Astrid would choose Hiccup over him. But, it’s one kiss. That can’t mean too much, right? It’s not like the two are betrothed.

 He definitely still has a chance with Astrid.

* * *

**_Race to the Edge - Chain of Command, age nineteen_ **

 Snotlout couldn’t get the kiss from Minden out of his head. It wasn’t that he didn’t enjoy it, because he did. It’s more of he feels guilty. Logically, he knows he shouldn’t, but this big part of him can’t help it. He’s spent most of his life chasing after Astrid, and now that she’s made if official with Hiccup he feels lost. He’d always expected her to change her mind about him, and they’d end up together. It took Snotlout longer than he’s proud to admit that Astrid won’t be changing her mind about  him.

 They had returned from Wingmaiden Island not too long ago, and were eating in the clubhouse. Hiccup and Astrid were sitting closely, whispering to each other, while the rest of their group was talking loudly. The couple always acted as if the rest of them didn’t exist, and Snotlout wishes things could be that easy for him.

 It’s stupid to feel guilty when Astrid was never his to begin with. He always idolized her because he considered himself one of the strongest Vikings in Berk and she was also one, and together they could have been a power couple. Snotlout had this entire image in his head, and now, he’s slowly starting to realize that it’s not going to happen. If there’s one thing that Snotlout has always been unsure about, it’s change. He had had come to terms years ago that his future wasn’t going to be what he had originally planned, but he wasn’t expecting it to be so far off that Astrid is married to Hiccup and he’s married to someone else.

 Snotlout hates that Minden kissing him has him feeling like this. He doesn’t want to feel guilty and he doesn’t want to feel jealous, but sometimes you can’t help it. You can’t control who you have feelings for, and Snotlout knows he can’t shut his feelings off for Astrid.

 He vows in that moment that he’s going to get over Astrid Hofferson somehow.

* * *

_**How To Train Your Dragon 2 - age twenty** _

 Snotlout remembers when he was fifteen and flirting with Astrid all the time. He’s not proud of how hard he had tried to get her when she was clearly after one thing only - winning dragon training. Then she started noticing Hiccup, and it became even clearer who she had eyes for.

 He’s proud to say that he’s moved on. He doesn’t feel anything for Astrid anymore. She’s off being happy with Hiccup, and Snotlout is trying to get Ruffnut’s attention. Of course, it’s not going all that well, considering she’s trying to get Eret, and he also has to beat out Fishlegs. It’s anyone’s game, really. No one is sure on who has Ruffnut’s attention most, but that’s not Snotlout’s point.

 He’s over Astrid, and it feels great.

 Or, he thought he was over her until he saw her flirting with Hiccup, which isn’t anything out of the ordinary anymore, but it didn’t sit well with him. He has feelings for Ruffnut, why does he still feel this bad over Astrid?

 Snotlout had sat alone in the Great Hall that night, not wanting to be around anyone at the moment. He just wanted to be by himself and gather his thoughts. It was like taking one step forward and three steps back. He hadn’t thought of Astrid in months, and suddenly, after the defeat of Drago, the feelings come back. What is it about her that’s so great? He’s been trying to figure it out for a while, but he can’t place what’s so special about her.

 “What are you doing by yourself?”

 Snotlout looked up from his plate and towards the voice that spoke to him. “Just felt like being alone.”

 Valka sat at the empty seat across from him. It’s a strange concept. Valka, Hiccup’s mother, has been alive his entire life and she’s been living with dragons. It was a bit of a shock to everyone when they found out, but snotlout thinks she’s cool. Even cooler than Hiccup who did not live with dragons for twenty years.

 “Is something bothering you?”

 Is he that obvious? This woman who doesn’t know him can tell he’s upset. “Not really.” He took a glance at her and she was watching him with a raised eyebrow. He can’t very well tell Hiccup’s mom that he’s upset over Astrid being with Hiccup instead of him. “Um, just.. Ruffnut. Yeah, Ruffnut is what’s bothering me.”

 “One of the twins?” Snotlout nodded, “what about her?”

 “She can’t decide between Eret, Fishlegs, and me. She’s kind of just playing us all. I don’t know how to get her to choose me over them.”

 Valka hummed, studying Snotlout’s face. “Have you ever thought of just telling her how you feel?”

 Snotlout snorted. “Right! Like you can just go up to a woman and tell her you like her.”

 “That’s exactly what you should do. You won’t get her by just sitting around and moping. Viking up, Snotlout, and go get her.”

 Snotlout watched her walk away with wide eyes. No one goes out of their way to make sure he’s okay, and Valka did. Astrid may be off his list now, and Ruffnut most likely won’t work out, but Valka very well could.

* * *

  ** _The Hidden World - age twenty-five_**

 Hiccup and Astrid had finally decided it was time to officially introduce the next heir of Berk, their daughter Zephyr, to all of Berk. They were all gathered in the Great Hall with Hiccup, Astrid, and their little bundle standing in the front of the room, waiting for everyone to settle.

 Snotlout thought back on when Zephyr was born while they waited. Hiccup had asked him to be there as some extra reassurance, and how could he have said no when his friend looked so nervous? The birth of Zephyr had been long and boring to Snotlout and had given him plenty of time to think back on his life.

 Things with Ruffnut never went anywhere. She ended up marrying Fishlegs, and they ended up having twins of their own. Valka didn’t work out, but a part of him always knew it wouldn’t. Chasing after her had just been fun and it was his way of trying to get over Astrid. For the most part, he thinks it worked.

 Snotlout had come to realize through the years that he’s okay with where his life is. The future wasn’t as scary as he thought it was going to be, and everything is working out for him. No, he’s not married, and he’s okay with that. He’s perfectly fine with helping all his friends with their kids and being their favorite ‘uncle’ and babysitter.  He didn’t think he would be this happy about being single, but it’s working for him.

 “Snotlout?” Astrid called to him, pulling him from his thoughts. “Do you want to hold her?”

 Snotlout nodded, holding his arms out for the baby. He smiled down at her and it was in that moment, while holding Zephyr and listening to Hiccup and Astrid talking that he realized he’s finally over Astrid Hofferson.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Request Drabbles at: https://the-dragon-central.tumblr.com/


	14. New Parents

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> anonymous asked:
> 
> Modern Hiccup and Astrid trying to get use to taking care of newborn Zephyr?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, Anon! @hiccstridgirl here! I hope you enjoy this drabble!

A cry rang through the Haddock house. A mother and father worked quickly to find out what was wrong with their daughter.

“What does she want?!” Hiccup searched through all of their blankets in a closet. “Did you hide her binky somewhere?”

Astrid groaned as she rocked the baby in her arms, trying to get her daughter to calm down. “Last time I saw it was on the kitchen counter.”

“But I checked! It wasn’t there!”

“She’s fed, changed, swaddled, why won’t she just go to sleep?!” the blonde tried to keep the tears forming in her eyes from running down her cheeks. “Come on, Zeph. Please go to sleep for Mommy and Daddy.”

Zephyr seemed to think her mother’s request was incredibly inconsiderate and began to cry louder, if that was even possible.

“Maybe call your Mom? She would know what to do!” Hiccup shouted over the wails.

“She’s probably sleeping! It is four in the morning!”

“Don’t remind me! I’m supposed to be into work by five!” Astrid passed Zephyr to Hiccup, who started bouncing the crying baby. “What do you want? You some cake? Babies eat cake, right? That’s normal?”

“Hiccup, she’s one week old! She can’t eat cake!” 

“Well, we tried everything else! Every single time we put her in the crib she starts crying again!”

“Maybe we changed her diaper wrong! Can you change a baby’s diaper wrong? Is it too tight?”

“We changed it six times! I’m pretty sure it’s not the diaper!”

“Maybe I didn’t feed her enough! She didn’t really latch the first time!”

Zephyr cried louder when Hiccup began to place her back into her crib, making him quickly pull her into his arms again. “Perhaps we should stop shouting! I don’t think it’s helping!”

“WHAT DID YOU SAY?! I CAN’T HEAR YOU!”

“I SAID I THINK WE SHOULD STOP SHOUTING!”

“I WOULD BUT THEN I COULDN’T HEAR WHAT YOU ARE SAYING!”

“LET’S JUST PUT HER IN THE CRIB AND SEE WHAT HAPPENS!” Hiccup laid Zephyr in her crib and she began wailing more. When Astrid went to pick her up, her husband shook his head. “GIVE IT A MINUTE!”

When the baby didn’t stop crying Astrid sighed. “IT’S NOT WORKING!”

“WELL, THAT WAS MY LAST IDEA! HICCUP’S IDEA FARM IS NOW SHUTTING DOWN DUE TO LACK OF SLEEP!”

“WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO?!”

“SHE’S YOUR DAUGHTER!”

“OH, SHE’S MY DAUGHTER?!”

“WELL, I NEVER CRIED LIKE THIS WHEN I WAS A BABY!”

“YOU KNOW THAT FOR CERTAIN?!”

“WELL…”

“WELL, WHAT?”

“I’M NOT CERTAIN…. BUT I’M PRETTY SURE!”

“FINE! LEAVE IF YOU WANT TO!”

“I HAVE TO GET READY FOR WORK!”

“SO WORK’S MORE IMPORTANT THAN YOUR FAMILY?!”

“I NEVER SAID THAT!”

“OH SURE-”

“Shh,” Hiccup shushed his wife.

“DON’T YOU SHH ME! I HAVE HALF A MIND TO-”

“Astrid, be quiet!” Hiccup yelled in a whisper voice. He motioned over to crib where Zephyr was sleeping.

“You have got to be kidding me. She falls asleep to us arguing? We’re the worst parents ever,” Astrid buried her head in her hands.

“No, we’re not. We’re  _learning,_ that’s all,” Hiccup rubbed the blonde’s back. 

“I’m sorry…”

“Me too. I can take the day off of work if you want. I could help with  _your_ daughter.”

Astrid scoffed. “Sure, my daughter…. Are you serious?”

“Yeah, I mean I’m too exhausted to see anything anyway.”

“I’m pretty sure we could get a couple hours of sleep in while Zephyr’s quiet. Maybe we could even do the dishes if we have time.”

“I love the way you talk dirty to me.” Astrid smiled at Hiccup’s comment and took  his head, leading him to bed.

_As long as they were together, they’d get through parenthood alive._


	15. The Story of the Left Leg

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! This request was written by @astrid-foreverythingelse (on Tumblr)! Hope you enjoy!
> 
> NOTE: StefWrites did NOT write this awesome one-shot, she just posted its greatness for AO3 to read! Be sure to check out @astrid-foreverythingelse on Tumblr who DID write it! ;)

“Daddy, why do you only have one leg when Mommy has two?”

Hiccup looked up from the vegetables he was chopping into the curious eyes of his daughter across from him.  A piece of parchment with a crude drawing of sheep in a pasture lay forgotten in front of her.  However, the charcoal remained in her hand as she absentmindedly fiddled with it, waiting patiently for her father’s response.

Hiccup glanced down at his prosthetic and then back to his daughter.  “I have two legs!  See?” he said, stepping around the table and dancing in a small circle.

Zephyr laughed.  “No, Daddy!  How come Mommy has two normal legs and you have a metal one!”

“Well, I’d hardly call your mother’s legs normal,” he joked, earning him a punch in the arm from his wife.  She scooped up some of the vegetables and playfully glared at him, crossing the room to the firepit as Hiccup massaged his sore arm.

“Daddy,” Zephyr insisted through giggles.  “Uncle Tuffie said a troll took it ‘acuz you wouldn’t give him a buckle off your s’irt.  Is that true?”

Astrid snorted over by the firepit, and Hiccup rolled his eyes.  “You’re absolutely right Zephyr,” Astrid said before Hiccup could say a word.  “Your Daddy loves his shirt buckles so much that he let a troll take his leg instead of losing one.”

“Astrid!  Don’t feed into this!”

Astrid threw her head back and laughed, and Zephyr quickly followed with more of her signature giggles.  Baby Nuffink screeched in delight from his infant chair and clapped his hands together.

“Nuffink!  Not you too!” Hiccup cried.  The baby only cried out again, elated by the bright and joyful smile on his father’s face.

With the family settled back down and Zephyr’s attention back on her drawing, he hoped the subject had been forgotten.  But Zephyr was stubborn.  “Daddy, are you really not gonna tell me the story?” she asked as she continued drawing the fluff on her sheep.

Hiccup glanced to Astrid in desperation, but she only offered a shrug and a devious smile.  An obvious “you’re on your own” gesture.  And so Hiccup sighed, deciding how to water down the story for his toddler.  “You really want to hear this story, huh?” he said, sitting in a chair beside Zephyr.

Zephyr looked up immediately, eyes bright with wonder and lips slightly ajar.  She nodded fervently and dropped her charcoal as she turned in her chair to fully face her father.  He chuckled as warmth flooded his chest; he loved nothing more than seeing his children so happy and interested, no matter what it was that sparked their curiosity.

So he crossed his arms on the table and leaned towards his expectant daughter.  “Did I ever tell you about Old Berk?  Before the dragons lived with us?”  Zephyr shook her head.  “Well, remember, when your mom and I were kids we didn’t live where we live now.  We lived on a whole other island far away from here.  But you see, when we lived there, dragons would come and try to steal our sheep and our fish and our food for themselves.”

“The dragons?” Zephyr whispered, voice dripping with wonder and smile crossing her face as she remembered dragons from other stories her parents told.  They were always her favorite stories, and she wondered what they had to do with her father’s missing leg.

“The dragons,” Hiccup repeated.  “All kinds of dragons of all different sizes, not just the ones like Mommy and Daddy’s dragons.  And the brave Vikings like your mom and all your aunt and uncles helped fight those dragons.”

Zephyr’s brows pinched together.  “Fight them?  But Daddy, I thought the dragons were our friends?”

“They are, sweetheart,” he said, overjoyed his daughter already understood the important fact from previous stories of Toothless and Stormfly.  “But that wasn’t until after.  See, we were mad at the dragons because we didn’t know why they kept attacking us and stealing our food.

“Like when Baby Nuff grabs my food off my plate?” she asked innocently.

Hiccup chuckled.  “Yep, just like that.  So, we fought back.  But then Daddy met Toothless and things got a little…  Weird.”  Zephyr was quiet now, fully enveloped in the story, so Hiccup continued.  “I didn’t want to tell anyone because I didn’t want them to find Toothless and hurt him, so I tried to learn from him instead.  Well then one day your Mommy followed me into the forest because she was mad I kept beating her in Dragon Training-”

“Cheating was more like it,” Astrid said as she stirred the contents of the pot over the fire.

Hiccup smiled her direction but continued.  “-and she wanted to know how I did it.  And that’s when Mommy met Toothless.”

Astrid had joined her family around the table now, and she set her hands on her husband’s shoulders, leaning in towards her daughter as well.  “And then, your Daddy and Toothless kidnapped me!”

“Now, now, hold on!”  Hiccup said, holding up his hands.  Zephyr giggled and reached up towards her mother.  Astrid lifted the girl into her arms and sat in her daughter’s chair, perching Zephyr on her lap and wrapping her arms around her.  She kissed her hair as Hiccup continued his defense.  “We did not kidnap her, okay, we simply took her on a flight around Old Berk and the sea stacks and whatnot.”

“Unwillingly,” Astrid pointed out with a smile.

Hiccup rolled his eyes.  “You were going to run back to the village to tell everybody!”

“You don’t know that,” she teased.  Zephyr was thoroughly enjoying the banter, looking back and forth between her parents.

Hiccup sighed and gave in.  “Alright, fine, maybe we sort of, indirectly…  Kidnapped your mother.”  Zephyr giggled, sending a smile to her father’s face as he continued.  “But she loved that flight.”

“I did,” she softly admitted with a smile.

The couple glanced lovingly at each other, remembering a much simpler time, before continuing the story.  “But while we were flying on Toothless, he took a detour to Dragon Island.”

Astrid rested her chin on her daughter’s head, knowing Zephyr was once again engulfed in the tale when she didn’t interject with questions or comments.  Astrid always loved watching Hiccup tell stories to the children.  He was always so animated when he talked about anything he was excited about, and it made him a natural storyteller.  Even Baby Nuffink was intrigued by his father’s movements and voice despite lacking an understanding of his words.

“He flew us down into the depths of a big, big mountain and hid.  We watched all kinds of dragons flying down into the cave and dropping heaps of food into a massive pit in the middle.”  Hiccup dropped his voice to a whisper and Astrid could feel Zephyr leaning in towards her father ever so slightly.  “And then one little dragon dropped nothing more than a small fish into the pit, and that’s when we saw it.  The Red Death.”

Zephyr gasped, and Hiccup glanced at Astrid just for a moment as the two shared a smile.  But then Hiccup dove right back into storytelling, standing to better animate his story and voice returning full force.

“It rose from the depths of the pit and snapped at the dragons trying to escape.  I could’ve sworn it was as big as the mountain itself!  And it almost got us, but Toothless flew us out and right back to Berk.  Now, when Grandpa Stoic found out, oh boy, was he angry.  He had been searching for Dragon Island for years, and now he knew how to find it.  They strapped Toothless down on a boat and sailed off with the biggest army they could gather for Dragon Island.”

“Oh no,” Zephyr whispered, hands covering her mouth and blue eyes open wide.

“Oh no is right,” Hiccup said.

“But,” Astrid jumped in, “we had a secret weapon.”

Zephyr spun around to face her mother.  “What was that, Mommy?”

“We had Daddy.”

Hiccup’s hands slowly dropped as Astrid’s favorite shy half-smile joined the blush in his face.  She overtook the story, knowing he was too humble to tell the next part right on his own.

“Daddy taught me and your aunt and uncles how to train dragons in a matter of minutes.  Then he hopped on Stormfly with me and lead the Dragon Riders on our very first mission: saving the entirety of Berk.  Grandpa Stoic helped him save Toothless, and then Daddy and his dragon fought the Red Death one on one.”

“Woah…”  Zephyr’s mouth was open wide in astonishment now as she looked back to her father.  “Daddy, what did you do?!”

Hiccup took the story back.  “We got the Red Death to follow us high up into the sky.  And then just when we had it mad enough, we dove back down towards the ground.   And then we waited.  We waited for it to fire at us-“

“But they were running out of time,” Astrid jumped back in.  “Toothless’s tail had caught fire and it made it harder to fly with one side gone.”

“And then the Red Death opened its jaws to blast us, but Toothless blasted it first.  He crashed to the ground in a ball of flame!”  For a moment, Hiccup worried he had gone a little too far with the details in his excitment, but the intrigued and delighted look on his daughter’s face told him otherwise.  “Toothless tried to fly out of danger, but as he flew along the body of the Red Death, it’s giant tail came crashing down towards us.  With Toothless’s tail gone, he couldn’t change direction to fly out of the way.  And so it hit us.”

Zephyr gasped again.  “No, Daddy!  What happened?!”

Hiccup shrugged.  “I don’t remember, sweetheart.  Ask your mother.”

Hiccup turned to tend to dinner and Nuffink as Zephyr spun around in Astrid’s lap, pleading with her mother to continue the story.  Astrid took a deep breath.  “Daddy let go of Toothless when he was knocked out and started to fall back towards the ground.  Toothless, though, was still awake.  And he didn’t hesitate for a moment.  He dove to catch up with Daddy, reaching out his paws and trying so hard to catch him.  And then the flames swallowed them both.”

Zephyr quietly exhaled as tears brimmed her eyes.

Astrid leaned in close, touching her forehead to her daughter’s.  “But then when the smoke faded away, we saw Toothless laying in a heap on the ground.  And as he gently unfolded his wings, we saw Daddy carefully folded in his paws.  He did it.  He saved Daddy.”

“Or most of me, as Grandpa Gobber would say,” Hiccup added, holding Nuffink and stirring the stew.

Astrid smiled at him before turning back to her daughter.  “And that’s how Daddy lost his leg.”

Zephyr was quiet for a moment.  Hiccup and Astrid watched her carefully, waiting for a reaction to know what she was thinking.  Eventually, she nodded and said “That’s a lot better than a dumb troll.”

Hiccup and Astrid both laughed, relieved they didn’t scare their little girl.  Hiccup sat Nuffink back in his chair so he could scoop the stew into bowls.  “I’m glad you think so, sweetheart.”

“Daddy’s a pretty amazing hero, huh?” Astrid asked, setting Zephyr back in her chair so she could gather the rest of dinner.

“Yes yes yes!”  Zephyr reached up to her father as he set the bowls on the table.  He leaned over to scoop her up in a big hug, kissing her check before setting her back down.  “Ah, I don’t know about that.”  He looked up to his son, playfully pointing a finger at him.  “And now you’ve already heard this story, so it’s not my fault if you don’t remember it.  Understood?”

Nuffink flung his arms up and down, hitting the table in front of him twice before freezing with his hands in the air.  He dropped them again and threw his spoon across the table before looking back up to Hiccup and laughing, a big, open smile overtaking his face.

Hiccup chuckled and shook his head.  Zephyr’s eyebrows scrunched together, focus still trained on her brother.  “I don’t think he’s gonna remember that,” she said.

“Well, maybe you can tell him the story next time,” he said, ruffling her hair.

Zephyr smiled up at her father.  “Nuh-uh.  Nobody tells stories good like you, Daddy.”

“Hey now, I tell some pretty good stories,” Astrid said, juggling three plates of yak chops as she joined her family at the table.

Zephyr rolled her eyes.  “Yeah, about Daddy.”

“Not true!  I tell other stories!” she insisted, ruffling her daughter’s hair as well.  Zephyr smiled but returned to her drawing.  “Come on, what was the last story I told you?”

“How Daddy always let Mommy win the Dragon Races,” she said matter-of-factly, focus never leaving the parchment in front of her.

Astrid thought for a moment.  “Okay, fine.  What about the one before that?”

“How Daddy almost got ran over by a yak.”

Hiccup’s face turned redder than his shirt.  He forgot about that one.  Astrid chuckled, remembering the story now as well.  “Alright, alright, alright, but the one before that-”

“How Daddy-”

“Oh Thor, okay, you made your point,” Astrid interjected, leaning over to kiss her daughter’s cheek as she giggled.  Zephyr loved being right.

Hiccup smiled as he took in the sight of his little family enjoying their dinner, laughing and playing with each other.  They’d come a long way since the days of the Red Death, but he wouldn’t take any of it back for fear that it would alter this moment right here.

Not even his left leg.


	16. The Chief's Son and His Dragon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> anonymous asked:
> 
> I've seen someone asking a author to write a Switched Personality AU of Hiccup and Astrid so can any of you guys do a switch personality AU of the two? I would like to see how one of you guys can write it!!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi Anon, @astrid-foreverythingelse here! I hope you enjoy :)

Astrid Hofferson huffed as she trudged through the forest, thinking over the day’s events.  Hiccup Haddock, the Chief’s son, had bested her _again_ _._  Out of nowhere!  By the time she had worked up the courage to throw herself over the short wooden wall, Hiccup already had that Gronkle incapacitated.  How did he do it?!

And at that point, it was no surprise to Astrid that Hiccup would receive the honor of killing the Monstrous Nightmare.  And he didn’t even seem to care! No, no he looked _annoyed_ , like it was an _inconvenience_ to have to kill the beast.

If only Astrid had that luxury...

Astrid didn’t want to kill any animal, dragon or not.  She had the ability, sure, but she didn’t want to. But she was a better fighter than the other teens on Berk, and everyone knew it.  Everyone expected her to soar through Dragon Training and succeed in the Kill Ring unchallenged. Even when the cocky Hiccup Haddock showed up, no one expected any different.

No, not cocky...  It may have been how the rest of Berk described the Chief’s son, but Astrid knew better.  She knew it was... Confidence. He understood he didn’t quite belong or fit in with the other Viking teens.  He was different, yes, but that didn’t stand in his way; he never let it get to him. He seemed comfortable being on his own, like he knew it was his place and he was quite content with it.

Astrid groaned and began swinging her axe lazily across her body.  Why couldn’t she be like that? Why couldn’t she have that no-care attitude that Hiccup had?

Astrid cared a little _too_ much about what people thought of her, particularly her parents.  Which, admittedly, had never been a problem until recently. Astrid has always excelled at anything she put her mind to, as she was much more determined than the other Vikings her age.  Eventually it was just expected of Astrid to always give her all and then some, and it was expected to result in her success.

Dragon Training was no different.  And Astrid wasn’t worried; she was stronger than Fishlegs, more focused than the twins, and much more tactical than Snotlout.  Even when Hiccup sauntered in, she didn’t think anyone could best her (nor did anyone else). Hiccup was scrawny and was only there because his father forced him.  He was a non-issue.

But then...  The success he had was not only unmatched but unlike anything anyone had witnessed before in that Kill Ring.  He hadn’t even injured a single dragon! But everyone was entirely impressed; he seemed to incapacitate each one effortlessly, just like the Gronkle today.  No one even saw how he did it! But one moment it was flying towards him, and the next it was on its side, lying uninjured on the ground! Why was everyone impressed?!  This wasn’t Dragon Subduing Training, it was Dragon Killing Training!

In Astrid’s anger, she lost focus on her axe despite continuing to swing it with increasing force; it slipped from her grasp at just the wrong time and flew into the trees ahead.  She watched as the butt of the handle hit the ground, making the axe bounce even further away and out of sight. Astrid dropped her head and sighed. Scrubbing her eyes with the heels of her hand, she gathered her pride and began searching for the weapon, leading her to a sudden drop in the ground.  The break in the trees revealed a beautiful cove with a sparkling pond in the center surrounded by a wall of boulders... And her axe wedge in the ground below.

“Great,” she muttered, carefully planning a way the scale the rocky ridge.  It took some time, but eventually her feet landed in the soft ground below. She grabbed her axe and started circling the ridges, trying to spot the best way to scale back up to high ground.

That was when she heard the nasally voice behind her.

“We’re so leaving!  We’re leaving.”

Astrid froze.  What was he doing out here?!

“Let’s pack up.  Looks like you and me are taking a little...  Astrid?”

Astrid’s eyes grew wide as she spun around.  “Uh... Hi, Hiccup...”

He furrowed his eyebrows and dropped the basket he was carrying on his back.  “What in Thor’s name are you doing out here?”

“I, um...  I could ask you the same thing.”

He raised his eyebrows.

Astrid’s eyes flicked to the side.  “I just... I threw my axe down here on accident and uh...  I just...”

Hiccup pursed his lips.

“...I wanted it back.”

“Yeah?  Maybe don’t throw it down into a cove next time,” he said, picking the basket up and shouldering past her.

“Well I didn’t do it on purpose,” she said, offended.  She looked around, desperately wanting to escape the situation.

But then she realized...  Why was Hiccup Haddock down here in a cove?  With a basket on his shoulder and a harness-like vest around his body no less?

“Are you just going to stand there or are you going to go home?” he asked, and this time Astrid caught a very slight tone of desperation in his voice.

“I just...  I’m looking for the best exit point so...  Um, who were you talking to earlier?”

“You?”

“No, before that.”

Hiccup rolled his eyes.  “Myself, now would you just get out of here?”

“Alright, alright, jeez...”  Astrid started to walk away, now looking for a place she could climb up to and hide to watch Hiccup.  He was acting strange, and she wanted to know why - and make sure he wasn’t in danger.

But then she saw the sleek, black body swallowed in the shadows on the other side of the cove.  She almost missed it, but the green eyes engulfed her soul. She stumbled backwards. No, it couldn’t be.  “Ni... Night...”

Hiccup spun around, seeing her eyes trained on the black Night Fury as he slunk out of the shadows.  Great. Hiccup ran after her. “Astrid, put the axe down!”

She took a step back, grip tightening in fear.  “Night...”

“For Thor’s sake,” Hiccup muttered.  He saw the dragon furl back on his hind legs and pushed his own faster.  “Astrid! Your axe!”

Wrong phrasing.  Astrid’s attention dropped to the weapon in her hand, but instead of dropping it like Hiccup wanted, she gripped it tighter and shifted to a weak fighting stance.

Hiccup managed to throw her axe to the side and push Astrid behind his back just as the dragon landed mere feet from the two Vikings.  “Woah, woah there bud! It’s okay, she’s a friend! Calm down, Toothless, it’s okay.”

Astrid was stunned.  He did it again! They weren’t even in the Kill Ring and he bested her again!  But then something slipped through her internal rant. “Toothless?” she asked, though the word was more of a squeak.

The dragon’s ears perked up as its gaze shifted to Astrid, head tilted slightly to the side.  “Yeah,” Hiccup said carefully. “It’s his name.”

Astrid wanted to look at Hiccup to see if he was serious, but she couldn’t pull her eyes from the dragon’s gaze.  “His? _Name?”_

“Astrid...”  Hiccup placated.  “It’s okay, he won’t hurt you.”

Now her gaze flicked between the large black dragon and the crazy scrawny Viking before her.  “He... He’s...”

“A dragon, yes, but he won’t hurt you.”  Hiccup took a step toward her, hands outstretched in a show of surrender.

Toothless seemed quite curious of this new female Viking, and his male Viking friend had made it clear she was also friendly.  So he slowly approached her, wanting to familiarize himself with her scent as to not attack her if she ever came around again. That would surely please his human.

Hiccup watched as Toothless lowered his head and slowly approached Astrid.  Her eyes immediately widened, but she was frozen in place. “Uh, bud, I’m not sure if she’s ready for that,” he said.  But deep down he was also curious about not only what the dragon was doing but also how Astrid would react, so he didn’t try any further to stop it.

All Toothless did was raise his head and sniff Astrid’s hair.  She looked up at the dragon, now towering over her, but her eyes continued to rise and roll into the back of her head as she collapsed on the ground.

Hiccup rolled his eyes and looked at Toothless, who was still curiously sniffing the girl.  “Great. Now what’re we supposed to do with her?”

* * *

When Astrid came to, the first thing she realized was that it was very windy.  More windy than any storm she could remember, the force of the gusts snapping her clothes against her skin and pulling her hair sideways across her face.

The next thing she realized was that she was draped over something, not just laying on the ground.  Confused, her eyes fluttered open as she tried to regain her bearings. As her eyes began to adjust to the bright light of the sun, she realized a hand was resting on her back.

“What...?”

“And she lives,” a nasally voice sarcastically quipped.

Suddenly the imagine of a large black dragon innocently poised behind the crazy, scrawny Viking boy popped into her head.

Until, that was, she looked down to see the sea churning a mountain’s height below her.

The scream that tore out of Astrid’s mouth pierced Hiccup’s ears and startled Toothless below them.  Her sudden movement as she attempting to pull herself upright coupled with Toothless swerving slightly in his surprise just about sent Astrid toppling backwards off the scaly beast.  She saw a very vivid image of her crashing into the water below in her mind, but then a firm hand wrapped around her waist and pulled her against his chest.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you.  This high up, that water will probably shatter every bone in your body.”

Astrid wanted to pull away from Hiccup, but at this point he was the only sturdy thing for her to hold on to excluding the dragon.  So instead she just clutched to his arm for dear life. She tried to slow her breathing and calm herself, but her eyes were crazed with fear when they met Hiccup’s.  He raised his eyebrows. “Can I help you?” he added sarcastically.

“Get. Me. Down,” Astrid breathlessly replied.

“Nah, I’m good,” Hiccup said, shrugging as he leaned back in the saddle and propped himself up on his free hand.  Astrid moved with him to his surprise, refusing to let his arm go.

“Why?” she threatened, though the breathy tone dissipated any force.

“So you can run off and tell the whole village what the kooky Chief’s son has done this time?  I don’t think so. Normally I wouldn’t care, but I also don’t want to be banished. This might be the thing that actually pushes my father over the edge.”

Astrid was quickly realizing her attempts at remaining calm were failing miserably.  “Hic-Hi-Hiccup please get me _on the ground,”_ she insisted, anxiety rising higher the longer she stared at the glassy water below.

Hiccup noticed the fear only growing in her eyes and felt slightly guilty about throwing her on his dragon’s back for a impromptu flight.  But he also didn’t know how to get her back to Berk unconscious, and he had to find a way to make her see that Toothless wasn’t a threat. So he sighed and sat back up.  “Come on, he’s not that bad.”

She didn’t even seem to hear him.  Her breathing quickened even more and tears began to form in her eyes as she stared at the water.

Hiccup’s brows furrowed in concern.  He gave in, not wanting her to pass out again but also not liking the fear still building in her eyes.  It didn’t suit her. He adjusted his arm from a strictly securing hold to more of an embrace, pulling her closer to his chest.  He leaned forward and patted the side of Toothless’ head. “Why don’t we glide right over the water for a while, bud? Slowly.” he said.  Astrid curled into his chest, still clutching his arm as he leaned protectively over her hunched form and held onto the saddle with his free hand.  Toothless gently sloped down until the water was only an arm’s length away.

Hiccup smiled down at Astrid as she curiously unfolded her head.  He loosened his grip, but Astrid tightened hers immediately around his arm.  “It’s okay,” he said with a smile. She looked like she didn’t want to let go still, but she gave him enough slack to move.  He leaned over and broke the surface of the water with his fingers, closing his eyes and enjoying the feeling of the wind cutting through his hairline in the same way his fingers cut through the glassy surface.  He opened his eyes again and smiled up at Astrid. “See? It’s not so bad!”

She wasn’t convinced enough to match his posture, but Hiccup could see her starting to relax.  Her legs were unfolded from beneath her now and hanging over one side of the dragon. What he didn’t realize was that she was more curious about this new smiling and inviting Hiccup than the things the black beast she was currently riding could do.  Something about his excitement to share this new discovery of friendly dragons with someone was intriguing.

“Nice smile you got there,” he said as he straightened up, surprising Astrid.  She hadn’t realized her breathing had returned to a normal pace and a small smile replaced the fearful grimace.  Even more so, it surprised her that the phrase sounded like a true compliment rather than a tease.

He wrapped his arm tighter around Astrid’s waist and patted Toothless again.  “Alright bud, let’s show her what you got.”

The dragon warbled excitedly and began to climb towards the sky.  Astrid yelped and threw an arm around Hiccup’s shoulders as her opposite hand gripped his tunic collar, but she wasn’t as fearful as before.  She was able to appreciate the pure _beauty_ of the land, sea, and sky surrounding Berk in a way she never could before.  The glow of the sunset casted warm colors over the fluffy clouds that seemed to disappear the moment she reached a hand out to touch them, yet were still clearly present and left her hands feeling as if the sea had gently sprayed them.  Birds flocked around the trio as they weaved in and out of sea stacks. Fish happily lept from the water as they glided along the surface of the sea. Astrid wouldn’t have noticed time had passed at all if it weren’t for the sinking of the sun over the horizon and the darkening of the world around them.  Her arm stayed around Hiccup’s shoulders and her hand still over his chest but no longer in the deathgrip from before; by now her body was entirely relaxed and she held few qualms of being so high above the world.

She took a deep breath.  “I have to admit, this is all pretty amazing.”  Looking down at Toothless she added, “He’s pretty amazing too.”

“Amazing enough to keep him a secret?”

Astrid turned her head to respond, but was frozen to silence when she realized how close her face was to his.  She could feel his warm breath on her lips as she tried to form her reply. “I... I think I could, uh... Could do that.”

“You think?” he muttered, though the sarcastic tone he typically responded with was replaced with genuine care and curiosity.

“Mhm,” she muttered shyly, unable to string together any other sort of reply.

“What else do I have to do to convince you?” he asked.  Astrid’s cheeks blushed and her lips desperately moved to form words.  Hiccup chuckled at her hesitation, but his desires won over; he leaned in and closed the distance swiftly, causing Astrid to stiffen as their lips brushed together.  But it took only a moment for her to relax into the kiss as Toothless made his way back to the cove.

Hiccup pulled away as Toothless landed back on the ground.  “How about now?” he softly asked.

Astrid tried to look away as she brushed her hair behind her ear, but she could keep her eyes from traveling back to Hiccup’s now kind gaze.  He chuckled again and slipped down off Toothless, holding a hand up to Astrid. She took it, but was still quite unsteady and fell off the dragon into Hiccup’s arms.  He set her back on the ground as Toothless turned his head, gently nudging his nose against her back. When she turned around, the dragon’s deadly stare was replaced by a pleading glance.  She hesitated for a moment.

Seeing her hesitation, Hiccup wrapped an arm casually around her waist again and held a hand out to Toothless, stroking his snout.  Astrid looked at him and smiled, admiring the soft side she’d never seen in him. She mimicked his motion, reaching out her hand and gently stroking the surprisingly warm scales.  “I’ll keep your secret.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Request at: https://the-dragon-central.tumblr.com/


	17. Wild Life (Part 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Modern AU Hiccup and Astrid take Zephyr and Nuffink to the Berk Wildlife Rehabilitation Center and Sanctuary for "Bring Your Kid To Work Day". They introduce them to their most well-known inhabitants; Toothless, a black jaguar and Luna, an albino leopard, Stormfly, a Newfoundland white wolf/Florida black wolf hybrid, Hookfang, a tigon (a hybrid born from a tiger and a lioness), Meatlug, a Syrian Brown Bear, Barf and Belch, a two-headed King cobra, Cloudjumper, a great gray owl, (Strix nebulosa lapponica), Skullcrusher, a northern white rhino, Grump, a Bornean sun bear, Windshear, an Iberian lynx, and Sharpshot, a vervet monkey and the sanctuary's mascot.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> astrid-foreverythingelse (aka randiroo26) here! I absolutely loved the challenge this prompt was so thank you so much for submitting it, and I hope its at least somewhat like what you had in mind! It's quite a long one so it's coming in at least 3 parts. Enjoy!

“Alright, now do we remember all the rules?”  Astrid looked down at her two children vibrating in place with excitement.

Her husband chuckled behind her.  “I don’t think they’re listening anymore.”

“This isn’t funny, Hiccup.  Some of these animals can be very dangerous.”

“I’m aware, but we aren’t seeing those animals today.”

“Guys, I’m serious.  Animals aren’t always predictable, especially when they’re hurt like these animals are, so we have to be careful today.  Understood?”

The children nodded fervently, bouncing in place.  Astrid sighed, knowing it was a losing battle, and simply opened the door to the Berk Wildlife Rehabilitation Center and Sanctuary, gesturing her children into the large welcoming center.  Light poured in from the glass ceiling as the children spun slowly in awe, soaking up every bit of information their little brains could handle.

Suddenly, a Vervet monkey jumped down from his perch above the door and onto Hiccup’s shoulder.  He scratched the monkey’s cheek as the kids ran over to meet him.

“Daddy, is that Sharpshot?” Zephyr asked excitedly.

“Yes it is!  Our first resident and very own mascot!” Hiccup confirmed, kneeling down so the kids could get a better look.  “We found him when he was just a little baby. We think he was abandoned because he had two broken legs and a broken arm.  He might have fallen from a tree and his parents couldn’t find him.”

“That’s sad,” Nuffink said, puckering his lower lip as he reached out to the little monkey.  His forlorn expression didn’t last long, though, as Sharpshot immediately ran down Hiccup’s arm and onto Nuffink’s shoulder.

“It is sad,” Astrid jumped in, “But since we’ve had him for almost as long as he’s been alive, he loves being around humans.  He’s very quiet and gentle, so that’s why he’s our mascot.”

Hiccup stood up as Nuffink and Zephyr played with Sharpshot, jokingly bumping into his wife.  “Still think they won’t want to join the family business?” Hiccup smirked.

Astrid rolled her eyes and smiled.  “I never said they wouldn’t. They have far too much of you in them.”

“Oh, sure,” Hiccup added sarcastically.  “Alright, heathens, do you want to meet more animals or is this little guy all you wanted to see?”

“MORE!” the children screamed in unison.

“Then let’s get moving!”

~~~~~

Astrid and Hiccup couldn’t get enough of the wide-eyed wonder rolling off of their children in the backseat of the doorless Jeep as they drove to check on the first two animals, Sharpshot jumping between Nuffink and Zephyr’s laps and Hiccup and Astrid’s shoulders.  Astrid tried yet again to warn the children of the wild nature of these animals and how they weren’t all necessarily as playful as Sharpshot, but the warning seemed to fall on deaf ears. She knew they were listening from their distant nods, but they were also much more intrigued by the rehabilitation center flying by around them.

“Hey there, Snotlout!” Hiccup said, pulling up to the first fenced-in area.

Snotlout spun around at the sound of his name, eyes falling on the Haddocks.  “Hey Hiccup, Astrid,” he said, walking up to lean against the fence. “I should’ve known you’d be the ones to actually take part in Bring Your Kids To Work Day.”

“Hi Snotlout!” Nuffink cried from the backseat.

“Hey, Nuff!  Have you ever seen a tigon before?”

“What’s a tigon?” Zephyr asked.

Snotlout didn’t answer; he only smiled and turned his back. He took a deep breath and bellowed, “Hookfang!  Lunch time!”

Zephyr and Nuffink looked around curiously as Hiccup and Astrid smiled at each other.  The air was still, disturbed only by a gentle breeze rustling the leaves in the nearby trees.

Suddenly, a roar broke through the calm as a big cat bounded out of the tall grass towards the unconcerned Snotlout within the enclosure.  Zephyr and Nuffink screamed as the man was tackled by the animal.

Astrid laughed.  “It’s okay! Look!”

The fearful, wide-eyed pair frantically looked back to see the animal simply licking Snotlout’s face.  He laughed as he playfully pushed the big cat off of him. “Alright, alright, come on, Hookie, get off!”

Snotlout wiped off his face as he stood and looked back to the kids.  “Zephyr, Nuffink, meet Hookfang the Tigon.”

This time they truly paid attention to the big cat now rubbing his head against Snotlout’s stomach.  He wasn’t very large as compared to a lion or other “big cats” of the wild, but he was quite muscular.  His belly was covered in white fur and the rest of his body orange, with faint black stripes peppered across his back.

Well,  _ most _ of his back.

“What happened to him?”  Zephyr asked quietly, eyes fixed on the large patches of exposed skin.

Snotlout pursed his lips.  “Well, do you know where tigons are from?”

Nuffink jumped up, eager to answer the question, but stopped when he couldn’t think of one.

Zephyr pondered for a moment.  “Um...”

“Exactly,” Snotlout interrupted.  “They’re not an animal that happens naturally in the wild.  Tigers and lions don’t live on the same continent. So tigons and ligers, you can only find them in captivity.”

“Oh,” Zephyr said.

“This guy,” Snotlout continued, scratching behind Hookfang’s ears, “had another owner.  This guy was an exotic animal enthusiast. He had all kinds of animals on this big property hidden back in some woods, and not all of them legal.”  He paused for a moment to reach for the lid of a cooler. “Back, Hookfang!”

The tigon obeyed, turning his back and walking away towards the tall grass.  Snotlout pulled out a large steak of meat and hurled it towards Hookfang, who lunged at and grabbed the meat before disappearing back into the grass.

Snotlout walked back to the fence, continuing his story.  “There was a big fire, no one is really sure how it started.  They think it might have been something in the barn that caught, but by the time anyone found it, the entire property was up in flames.  Including the enclosures. Most of the animals had died by the time anyone got back to the property, and the owner, too. The few that did survive the fire ended up dying because their burns were so bad.  Hookfang was the only one that made it.”

Zephyr gasped quietly, and Hiccup turned around to see tears in not only her eyes, but Nuffink’s as well.  Even Sharpshot was sitting solemnly still in Zephyr’s lap.

“It took a lot of surgeries and skin grafts and medicine, but Hookfang pulled through.  And his skin is strong and healthy now. He won’t be able to grow fur back in the places where the worst burns were, but he doesn’t seem to mind.  We can’t release him into the wild because he’s never lived in the wild before, so he’ll live here for the rest of his life unless we can find somewhere better for him.”  Snotlout smiled at Zephyr’s sigh of relief. “He’s really happy here, I promise.”

“Alright, we’ve got a lot more animals to see,” Astrid interjected.  “Thank you, Snotlout.”

“Thank you!” the kids said in unison.

Snotlout saluted the family as they took off towards the next healing animal.

~~~~~

“Is that a polar bear?!” Zephyr cried.

“Not quite, Zeph,” Fishlegs corrected.  “She’s actually a Syrian Brown Bear; see how she’s more of a gray color and has some darker brown patches on her back?  She’s a lot smaller than a polar bear would be, too. Her name is Meatlug. Go on! Go up to the enclosure and meet her!”

Nuffink’s eyes grew wide and sparkly.  “Really?!”

“Sure!” Fishlegs encouraged.  “She’s and older bear, but she’s very playful.  She fell down a cliff when she was young and suffered some brain damage.  Physically, she’s one of our healthiest residents. Mentally, she’s still just a cub.”

“Is that why she’s still here?” Zephyr asked, running up to the enclosure.

“Yepp.  At first we were afraid she just wouldn’t grow, but she did.  Now we’re just worried that she’s too young mentally to defend herself.”  Meatlug curiously watched the children bouncing excitedly on the opposite side of the fence as Fishlegs made his way inside the enclosure.  “Come here, girl, it’s okay!”

Meatlug slowly approached Fishlegs, eyes on the children.  When she was about three feet away from her caretaker, she froze and tilted her head.

“What is it, girl?” Fishlegs asked.  “Don’t tell me you’re going to be shy now!”

Meatlug turned to Fishlegs and sniffed his direction.  She paused for a moment before standing up on her hind legs, tongue hanging out of her mouth, and bouncing over to him.  Fishlegs laughed delightedly as he embraced her and scratched her neck.

“Come on, you silly bear!” he said, leading her over to fence where the children patiently stood.

Back in the Jeep, Hiccup sat with an arm around Astrid and his other hand scratching Sharpshot’s head.  Astrid laid her head on Hiccup’s shoulder as they watched their children playing with the bear, both convinced the pair will end up in veterinarian school when they grow older.

Suddenly, they heard talons on the roof of the Jeep, making the three of them jump.

“Cloudjumper?” Astrid wondered aloud, jumping out of the Jeep.  Hiccup did the same, pulling Sharpshot up on his shoulder.

Sure enough, the Great Gray Owl was perched on roof.

“That’s odd,” Astrid mused.  “He only ever perches up there when we aren’t in it.”

“Unless-”

_ “Hoo-hoo!  Hoo-hoo!” _

Astrid and Hiccup shared a worried look.  Hiccup spun around. “Zephyr! Nuffink! Come on, we need to go!”

“Aw, but Dad!” Nuffink started.  “Can’t we just-”

“Now, guys!”

Zephyr and Nuffink heard the worried urgency in their father’s voice now as they saw their parents scramble into the Jeep.  They ran back as they watched the owl take off and fly down the road. The two were barely in their seats before Hiccup took off after the owl.

“Who’s that?”  Zephyr asked.

“Cloudjumper,” Astrid explained.  “He’s actually not a resident here anymore, he just sort of hangs around.  He had a broken wing that we fixed a while back, but after we released him, he managed to find his way here again.  We can’t really get him to leave.”

“So why are we following him?” Nuffink asked.

“Well, we figured out after a while of him being back that he doesn’t interact much with the animals.  He just sort of... Hangs back, and watches. He never makes a sound, never bothers anyone. But if any of our animals are in trouble, he finds a staff member and pretty much harasses them until they follow.  It’s the only time he approaches any other animal or human, and the only time he ever makes a sound.”

“Awesome,” Nuffink whispered.

“That’s one way to put it,” Astrid agreed, smiling back at her son.

“Who’s in trouble?” Zephyr asked.

“By the looks of the path were taking, probably Windshear,” Astrid thought aloud.

“Isn’t Heather here today?  I thought she went out to see her this morning,” Hiccup said.

“Maybe she needs help,” Astrid offered.

“Who’s Windshear?” Zephyr asked.

“She’s a young Iberian lynx.  After she left her mother, she wasn’t able to thrive.  Since lynxes are endangered, we took her in, in the hopes that we’d be able to release her back.  She hasn’t really taken to anyone except Heather, though.”

“Which is what worries me,” Hiccup added.  “If Heather can’t wrangle her in, I don’t think anyone can.”

Cloudjumper did in fact lead them to Windshear’s enclosure, confirmed when the owl landed on a tree within it.  “Stay here, guys,” Hiccup ordered his children as he and Astrid stepped out of the Jeep. Nuffink and Zephyr nervously watched as their parents carefully entered the enclosure.

“Windshear!” Astrid called.  “Heather?”

“Everybody alright in here?” Hiccup asked.

No response was given, making Hiccup and Astrid more nervous.

“Do you think we should drive through and look for them?”  Hiccup quietly asked Astrid.

“I don’t know.  We don’t have doors on the Jeep, I don’t want her to jump out and grab the kids.”

“I don’t either, but these enclosures are huge.  We can’t exactly walk it and look for them.”

Astrid gave her husband a displeased look; she was not looking for his sarcasm right now.  “Maybe we should just walkie Control, they’ll know where Heather is. If she’s here, we’ll send for someone to help her.  If not-”

“WINDSHEAR, NO!”

At the sound of Heather’s voice, much closer than either of them expected it to be, Hiccup immediately took off.  Astrid spun around to the kids and cried, “Stay in the Jeep, do  _ not _ go anywhere, we’ll be right back!”  She sprinted after Hiccup before they could respond.

They burst through a line of shrubs and found Heather standing off with the lynx.  She spun around for only a moment to see who it was that entered the clearing. “Astrid, Hiccup, stay back!  I’ve got this!”

Astrid took in the sight of Windshear, ready to pounce.  “Are you sure?” she asked warily.

“Yes!”

“What can we do?” Hiccup asked, ignoring her words.

“Get back behind the shrubs!  I don’t want her to feel like we’re ganging up on her, she’s just scared.”

Hiccup and Astrid hesitantly obeyed, slowly backing into the shrubs to watch in case Heather needed help.

“Hey, Windshear,” Heather cooed.  “It’s alright, girl, it’s just me.  You’re okay...”

Hiccup and Astrid held their breath as Heather slowly approached Windshear.  She may still be smaller than she should be from her low weight, but that only made her more vicious.  Her ears twitched slightly at Heather’s soothing voice, prompting Heather to continue. “That’s right, it’s just me, girl.  I just want to get a good look at you, make sure you’re okay.”

Windshear relaxed her stance slightly, laying on the ground as she watched Heather.

“That’s my good girl, Windshear.  Come here, it’s okay.” Heather slowly lowered herself to the ground now, sitting in the grass and giving Windshear the chance to close the distance.

Windshear didn’t move for a moment, carefully watching Heather’s every move.  Heather remained perfectly still, holding an outstretched hand in her direction.  Eventually, Windshear slowly slinked towards Heather, sniffing the air and listening intently.  Astrid grabbed Hiccup’s arm as the lynx slowly leaned in to sniff Heather’s fingers, desperately praying that she wouldn’t take a bite.

But instead, Windshear licked Heather’s fingers and rubbed her head against her hand, stepping into Heather’s lap and curling up comfortably.

Hiccup and Astrid both breathed a sigh of relief, catching Windshear’s attention.

Heather chuckled.  “It’s okay, girl, they won’t hurt you,” she said, petting the lynx’s head.

Hiccup and Astrid slowly stood.  “Are you alright?” Hiccup asked.

“Yeah, we’re all good now,” Heather said with a smile.  “I can take it from here. Thanks, guys.” Windshear stiffened as Hiccup and Astrid straightened, lazer eyes locked on the pair.  Heather’s smile faded as she observed her defensive stance over Heather. “Though I will politely ask you to slowly get out so she doesn’t freak out again.”


End file.
